


Wolves Of Secrets

by CrystalGirl259



Series: Wolves Of Secrets [1]
Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Human Pixel, Multi, human zane
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-08
Updated: 2020-10-25
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:14:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 90,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26901220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrystalGirl259/pseuds/CrystalGirl259
Summary: Being a teenager is hard enough, but being a werewolf teenager is a whole new level of toughness. Lloyd Garmaddon and his friends' secret are safe until a mysterious new boy turns up at school…
Series: Wolves Of Secrets [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1962856
Comments: 11
Kudos: 24





	1. Lone Wolf

Dark was the night as the full moon shined over the great city of Ninjago. The cold, misty wind whistled through the city as the citizens went about their own business, either going home to be with their families for the rest of the evening or to their evening jobs. The city of Ninjago was built on the sunny side of a gentle mountain and was truly a beautiful place. Its grace was only matched by the backdrop of lush, green forests which have helped shape the ancient city to what it was today.

The city had a very clear Japan, Tokyo feeling too it.

The city's skyline was growing with stylish skyscrapers and they each represented the many different aspects of the sizeable city. Businesses were booming in Ninjago and it had attracted a lot of attention. A few new cultures had left their mark not just on education, but also upon the city's identity. What historically was a city of predictability has grown into a new culture of variety and it's this that united the nearly 6 million people to this day.

It's this multicultural identity that had truly left its mark.

Hundreds of gastropubs, bakeries, and clubs offer a plethora of culinary choices. Those who felt hungry for something else could enjoy art galleries, musical activities, photography, or one of the many other recreational activities. Just outside the main city area, right on the edge of the dark forest, stood a large, lone house. In this house was a very special family. From the outside, this house looked cozy. It had been built many, many years ago with white bricks and had spruce wooden decorations.

Small, half-rounded windows added to the overall style of the house and had been added to the house in a fairly asymmetrical pattern.

The house was equipped with a large kitchen, two bathrooms, and three bedrooms. It also had a large living room, four bedrooms, a roomy dining room, a garage, and a large basement. The roof was high and slanted to one side and was covered with black ceramic tiles with a small chimney. Many smaller windows let in plenty of light to the rooms below the roof. The house itself was surrounded by quite a modest garden, with mostly grass, a few colorful flower patches, and a small shed at the other end of the garden.

Inside the house, a young teenage boy sat on the couch, eating popcorn and watching a movie.

This was Lloyd Garmadon. He had long, blonde tousled hair, and brown arched eyebrows with bright emerald green eyes that many people would state could sometimes glow in the dark. He wore a dark green jacket with a white t-shirt and black pants and black and dark green sneakers. As the clock was about to strike midnight, Lloyd was about to turn the boring movie off when suddenly with was a rustling sound outside. Fearing the worst, he quickly switched off the TV, grabbed his coat, and ran outside.

As soon as he stepped out into the cold night, however, instead of the rustling he had heard mere seconds before, all he could hear was an owl hooting nearby and the wind howling through the trees.

He was about to go back inside when all of a sudden he heard a loud crash from the other side of the house. He quickly ran towards the sound and was shocked by what he saw. He saw a full-grown, grey timber wolf sniffing around some turned over trash cans, snacking at the rancid chicken meat. He looked to the steel doors to the basement and was horrified to see another wolf attempting to jump out. As soon as the grey wolf sensed him, it slowing turned around to face the teen with a low growl, baring its sharp teeth.

Lloyd, however, was completely unfazed by this and he simply stood up straight.

"Get back inside!" He roared, startling the wolf for a second before it crouched down and started snarling louder. Instead of running away, however, Lloyd simply lowered onto his knees and bared his blunt teeth at the wolf. His emerald green eyes suddenly turned to a stunning gold that shined in the dark. The teen and the wolf snarled at each other as Lloyd slowly crawled forward, making the wolf back up. The grey wolf suddenly yelped as it fell back into the dark cellar.

Lloyd's eyes returned to their normal color as he stood up and looked into the dark pit.

Suddenly one of the wolves jumped up and bit into his thick coat's sleeve, ripping it off as the wolf fell back down. Not missing a beat, Lloyd quickly closed and locked the cellar doors, looking at the full moon as the wolves muffled howls sounding into the night...

* * *

The next morning, as the rain came pouring down, Lloyd quickly got dressed and ran down to the cellar. He loudly slid the iron door open and stepped inside where he saw his mother Misako and his uncle Wu slowly getting to their feet as the finished getting dressed. His mother had ash grey hair braid into a ponytail with a snowy white streak and pale green eyes. She wore a pale khaki utility jacket with dark brown pants and a short, dark green scarf.

Wu was an elderly man with a long white beard.

He was wearing white robes and a conical straw hat. They both yawned and stretched as Lloyd glared daggers at them.

"I think that chicken was off." Misako gagged as she clutched her stomach.

"I can't believe you two." Lloyd glared Breaking out and raiding the bins."

"Oh, Lloyd!" She cried as she rushed forward and examined his arm. "I am so sorry! I didn't break the skin, did I?! Does it need stitches?!" She panicked, but he pulled his arm away from him.

"You always say how I have to stay hidden from humans and never give in to our wolves." He growled as they walked back upstairs to the kitchen. "Yet the moment you get a chance, you're out of the cellar and away!"

"You don't understand how powerful the pull of the full moon is," Wu explained. "When you're old enough to take wolf form-"

"I won't be a hypocrite, who says stay hidden and then breaks out at the first whiff of food!" He replied and turned to his mother with a slightly disgusted look. "And that chicken..."

"Actually, your mother's not the only one who's been eating things she shouldn't, is she?" Wu frowned as he opened the trash can to reveal the leftover popcorn.

"Yes, and you were still dressed when you came outside, young man." Smiled Misako when her son froze. "Didn't we agree in bed at 10 on school nights?"

"I'm going to miss the bus." He quickly said and ran for the front door. When he made to grab his coat, however, he let out a long sighed when he saw the missing sleeve...

* * *

Lloyd blushed furiously as he kept his eyes on the school floor as the other students stared and laughed at his soaked clothes. He let out a small growl as he shivered; his mother owed him a new coat.

"Hey, Lloyd!" A voice called out and he looked up to see his friends Zane Jullien, Jay Walker, Kai Smith, Nya Smith, and Cole Brookstone stood by their lockers, waiting for him.

Jay reddish-brown curly hair with brown eyebrows and light freckles with dark blue eyes. He wore a blue jacket with a white stripe over a white t-shirt and blue pants with an orange wooly scarf.

Zane had platinum blonde, almost white, hair that stood up straight in something like a crew cut and bright icy blue eyes. He wore white pants and shoes with a long-sleeved, cyan blue shirt under a navy blue knitted vest.

Kai had tall, thick spiky brown hair, shaped like fire and bright amber eyes that shined like burning embers. He had a focused expression on his face, with a scar visible on his right eyebrow and bandage above his left. He wore a red half-zipped-up jacket over a white shirt with some kind of Japanese symbol on the back of the jacket and brown pants.

Nya was Kai's younger sister who had long black hair kept in a ponytail, pale pink lipstick, small dimples on her cheeks with dark brown eyes, and she had a beauty mark on her right cheek. She was wearing a leather jacket over a white shirt with blue stripes and dark blue torn jeans.

Cole had a very muscular body, being the strongest kid in the whole school, with long, shaggy black hair and bushy eyebrows with very dark green eyes that reminded Lloyd of cold emerald stones. He wore a black leather jacket and pants with a dark brown tank top and black heavy-duty boots.

Lloyd smiled as he walked over to them. They were the only people who could possibly understand the struggles he faced every day as a teenage werewolf; because so were they. Well... sort of anyway. Only he and Nya had yet to transform on a full moon, but they knew it could happen any month now and they were both nervous and excited.

"What happened to you?" Jay asked when they saw he was dripping water into the hallways.

"My coat got eaten by werewolves." He deadpanned.

"Don't you start too." Kai groaned.

"We've already had this from... Oh, Pixel!" Nya suddenly smiled as the said girl walked over to them. Pixel had pale, almost white, skin with wide lips and bright green eyes. Her hair was styled like Nya's and was a very light platinum blonde. She had a purple dress with red details and an opening in her left arm that showed a part of her chest, and red heels. Lloyd simply smiled and rolled his eyes. Pixel Borg was the only one in their friend group that wasn't a werewolf.

She was a very good friend to them, mostly to Zane, since childhood and it hurt them they couldn't share their secret with her.

"Did you hear last night in the forest?" She asked with a big smile on her face, but they all shrugged. "Howling." She replied and they froze as she pulled out her cell phone. "Here, look what I found on Carper's Lane this morning." She explained as she showed them a picture of a paw print in the mud. "I'm going to compare it to paw-print photos of different dogs."

"What, every type of dog?" Cole scoffed.

"This is proof." She insisted. "Proof that there's something weird over there in the forest."

"Pix, if your father found out that you snuck off into the forest in the middle of the night again he wouldn't be too pleased," Zane warned.

"If I can prove there is some kind of undiscovered creature in the forest then that alone would guarantee my scholarship into Horizon Academy."

"You know your father could pull some strings and get you in there no problem." Jay pointed out.

"I know, but I want to earn my spot and my father understands and respects that." She explained.

"Hey, Pixel!" One of the cheerleaders, Maggie, suddenly called out. "I saw something weird in the forest, you!"

"Haven't you got hair-curlers to play with or something?" Nya snapped before she and her friends quickly walked away.

"I really need to start my research, I'll catch up with you all later." Pixel smiled before she made a beeline for the library; as soon as she was out of sight, Nya suddenly grabbed the boys and shoved them into a nearby janitor's closet.

"Alright, who was it?" She glared.

"Wasn't me!" Jay exclaimed fearfully and the rest quickly denied it as well. Lloyd eyed each of them carefully. It could only have been Cole, Kai, or Zane; they were the only ones who spent the full moon on Zane's father's property deep in the forest. Since she couldn't transform yet Nya stayed in their apartment in the city and Jay spent it on her parents' junkyard on the other side of the city. The only problem was that Dr. Jullien's home was far from where Pixel said she found the paw prints.

He also knew the guys wouldn't go near the city, full moon or not.

"Maybe it wasn't one of us," Lloyd suggested. "My mom managed to get out the cellar last night and when I got them back in they started howling, and that paw print could have come from a normal dog."

"I suppose." She sighed when the bell suddenly rang; the group sighed as they made their way to their first classes. Lloyd quickly ran to his locker to get some of his textbooks when he suddenly caught the scent of something odd. It was a new scent, meaning whoever it belonged to was here very recently. He was about to follow the scent when he walked right into one of his teachers, Miss Koko. She had bright orange hair with amber eyes.

She wore orange lipstick and a pale brown suit.

"Lloyd, what are you doing? It's time for class." She ordered and Lloyd quickly scurried to his first class, making a mental note to investigate the scent later...

* * *

As soon as Lloyd ran into the classroom he immediately took his seat next to Jay. This was one of the few classes he and all his friends had together. As soon as he took his seat a teacher he hadn't seen before walked in with a big smile on his face.

She had greying brown hair tied in a bun and a dark blue dress.

"Welcome aboard students! My name is Ms. Laudita and I'm your new Social Studies teacher," She smiled as a student stepped into the room. "Everyone! This is Morro Ren, he's new here so I hope you'll all make sure he feels welcome." She explained and Lloyd was suddenly hit with the same smell from before. He looked up and saw the new kid eyeing them all cautiously. Lloyd quickly looked to the others and saw they had realized the same thing as him.

Morro Ren possessed long jet black hair with a dark green streak dyed in it and dark brown eyes.

He was wearing a pale green shirt with torn brown pants and black boots. As he moved to take a seat at the back of the class, he and Lloyd glared each other down without a word. The class continued as normal until the bell rang and Morro all but ran out, Lloyd and the others following close behind. As soon as Morro stepped into an empty stairwell Kai and Cole blocked his path.

"What are you doing here?" Nya growled.

"What?" The new kid asked, confusion clear on his face. "I'm looking for-

"No, here! On our territory!" Jay exclaimed.

"Do you not know the rules?" Zane asked.

"You can't stay here." Kai huffed.

"If my mom and uncle get a sniff of you-"

"I don't even know you!" Morro snapped as he took deep breaths.

"Exactly!" Lloyd exclaimed in frustration.

"I don't care whose territory this is; I'm not sticking around anyway, and why would I in this dump?" He sarcastically asked. "No smelly brats tell me whether to stay or go." He stated before shoving passed Kai and Cole and running down the stairs...

* * *

Later that day everyone was sat at their usual table in the cafeteria, enjoying their lunches. When Pixel and Dareth had joined them, Zane had explained what had happened with Morro when Pixel asked why they were all in a sour mood; leaving out some key details of course.

"We're not smelly!" Cole hissed angrily as he devoured a large slice of cake.

"Well, except for Jay." Kai shrugged absently, getting a hurt cry from the said boy and a kick from Nya.

"You did kind of start it." Pointed out Pixel.

"No, we didn't." Nya defended.

"Someone must know something about him or his family." Suggested Zane. "Seen moving vans, something." He added as a member of Kai's soccer team, Chad, walked over to their table.

"Hey, Kai, are you going to ask the new kid to try out?" He asked though it sounded more like an order.

"I don't think he's the right sort for the team." He replied, keeping his eyes on his food.

"Fine, I'll ask." Chad huffed and walked over to Morro's empty table.

"Wait." Cole gasped but it was too late.

"Relax guys, he won't bite." Pixel frowned at their behavior and the group shared nervous looks. They turned back to Chad and Morro when the new kid suddenly got up and right into a startled Chad's face.

"I don't like soccer and I don't want to hang around with you and your weirdo friend! You got that?!" He roared, sending a pointed look at Kai and everyone sat at the table.

"Obviously, they don't teach manners where he's from." Nya glared as Chad speed walked over to them on shaking legs.

"Next time, you need to approach the weird kid." He hissed to Kai as the cheerleaders suddenly pushed passed them and over to Morro's table, completely looking over the way he had just spoken to Chad. Before the new kid could escape, a blonde cheerleader named Harumi Jade took a seat next to him and practically curled around his arm, much to his disgust. Harumi had long white hair with long bangs fashioned in a bun with chopsticks.

She wore a green jacket with matching pants, a white shirt with red lotus flowers, and full lips painted red.

"Hey cutie, since you've only just got here the principle thought it would be a good idea for someone to show you around, and we know everything about this school; all the best clubs and people to hang out with." She explained as she flashed him a big smile.

"Those weird kids, who're they?" He asked as he pointed over to Lloyd's table, where they were still watching him.

"Oh, that's just Lloyd Garmaddon, Pixel Borg, Zane Jullien, Jay Walker, Kai Smith, Nya Smith, and Cole Brookstone." One of the cheerleaders happily said, only to cower away at Harumi's glare.

"Their families have lived here for centuries." She quickly dismissed. "Never leave the area, don't like strangers or questions."

"They're all cuckoo!" Another cheerleader added.

"What are we talking about them for? Let's talk about you." Harumi smiled as she leaned closer, only to gasp when Morro suddenly stood up, grabbed his bag, and stormed off, leaving a furious Harumi and a dumbfounded Lloyd behind...

* * *

After an awkward lunch, with Harumi and Chad and their groups giving them the stink eye, Lloyd and the others finally had had enough and went to their lockers to get their stuff for their next class.

"Are you guys joining us on Miss Jinro's forest stakeout?" Zane asked hopefully.

"It's open to anyone but is part of the ninth grade syllabus so all freshmen have to go," Pixel added with a smile. The others just rolled their eyes and chuckled, only to stop when Cole suddenly froze right in front of them. They looked over the taller teen's shoulder and were irritated to see Morro looking through his own locker from something.

That wouldn't have been a problem if it wasn't for the fact that his locker was right next to theirs.

Before they could do anything, however, Chad and his gang pushed them and 'accidentally' knocked into Morro, causing him to drop his bag and pieces of vegetables to come flying out. To say he was still sore about what Morro did in the cafeteria was an understatement.

"I thought I smelled something funny," Chad smirked as his gang laughed. "Is that your snack, freak?"

"Piss off," Morro growled. Unfortunately, this only made Chad angrier as he marched over to the new kid and violently shoved him into the lockers.

"Got a problem?!" He challenged, failing to see the veins on Morro's hands darkening as he bared his teeth. Before anyone could even blink, Morro suddenly jumped up, almost as high as the lockers, and pounced on the bully, sending them both to the ground. Feeling their stomachs dropping, Lloyd and his friends didn't miss a beat as they ran to stop the fight before any serious damage was done.

Kai and Cole managed to rip a snarling Morro off Chad while Pixel and Jay checked on the jock to make sure he was uninjured.

Quickly, Nya and Lloyd pushed the new kid into an empty art classroom just as Miss. Koko burst through the crowd of onlookers.

"What on Earth is going on here?" She glared as Zane, Cole, and Kai leaned against the door to the classroom, and Jay and Pixel helped Chad to his feet. Meanwhile, in the classroom, Nya and Lloyd mirrored their friends leaning against the door as Morro curled up on the ground, gasping for breath.

"What are you doing?" He cried out between breaths. "Get out!"

"Just breathe." Lloyd tried to reassure but Morro started growling as he backed further away.

"You have to get out!" He screamed as the veins in his face and neck started turning dark and his brown eyes turning a stunning yellow. Realizing it was too late now, Morro slowly looked up at them with a defeated look in his eyes. "I'm so sorry." He whimpered before he erupted into growls. Nya and Lloyd could only watch as his body shrunk and rearranged itself.

His clothes fell off his body as his skin was replaced with thick dark brown fur.

His face stretched out into a muzzle as his blunt human teeth sharpened. Once it was over, Morro slowly stood back up, but instead of a human, a full-grown timber wolf looked back at them. He snarled at the two teenagers before he suddenly started running around the room and on the tables, knocking several art supplies onto the floor.

"Morro!" Nya shouted and the wolf jumped down and snarled at them again.

Slowly, both teens knelt down to the floor with their heads down; when they did raise their heads they revealed their own bright yellow eyes, causing the wolf to freeze. He stared at them for a few moments before relaxing and lying down on the floor. Unfortunately, things weren't going so well outside the classroom for the others.

"He's crazy!" Chad cried as he finished telling his side of the story to Koko.

"You started it!" Pixel exclaimed.

"And where is Morro?" She asked but everyone just shrugged and looked around, still leaning against the door. "I'll catch up with him later; you two, follow me." She sighed as she led Pixel, Chad, and his group away. The friends waited until the crowd of students finally disappeared before they quickly ran into the classroom; only to find a human Morro putting his shirt on as Nya and Lloyd picked up all the items he had knocked over.

"I knew there was something about you guys." Morro smiled like a child on Christmas Day. "It's true, isn't it? You're all like me!"

"We're not like you!" Cole quickly said, a look of rage on his face, causing Morro's smile to drop.

"Yeah, we don't show off and pick fights and invades other packs' territory." Kai hissed.

"You're a danger to us all and the sooner you leave, the better," Nya added when all of a sudden the door to the classroom opened and one of the teachers walked in, only to freeze when he saw the state of the classroom.

"What happened here?" The teacher asked in shock. Morro simply huffed in annoyance as he pushed passed the stunned teacher and stormed down the hall and out of sight. They just let him go. Lloyd wanted to chase after him but he knew the others were right; Morro didn't belong here...

* * *

After school, the gang went to their favorite hangout, the Yin & Yang Bistro, to gather their thoughts. They would have gone to Wu's tea shop, Steep Wisdom, but they didn't want Lloyd's uncle to listen in on their conversation. Alas, instead of a quiet place for them to discuss what they had witnessed as they had hoped, the gang had to watch as Miss Jinro's forest stakeout class met at the cafe to prepare.

"Apologies, students." She sighed as the class started to get impatient. "We're waiting for the last few stragglers to show and then we go."

"Ya've got five more minutes unless yer buying somethin'" The cafe owner, Mr. Burke, grumbled from the counter.

"I still think we should tell someone, you know," Jay whispered.

"Yeah, let's tell Mom and Uncle Wu that a strange werewolf just showed up at our school and trashed a classroom after trying to attack a student." Lloyd laughed bitterly.

"To be fair who hasn't wanted to kick Chad's ass." Kai snicked, only to yelp when his sister kicked him under the table.

"This isn't a joke Kai." She hissed as Pixel and Zane walked over to them.

"Are you coming to the forest walk too?" Zane kindly asked.

"Pass," Cole said as the rest scrambled for excuses. Just when they thought their day couldn't get any worse, however, Harumi and her army of cheerleaders suddenly walked in and scanned the room.

"Hey, Burke, has Morro been here?" She asked sweetly.

"Who?"

"He's this tall and dreamy and he beat the crap out of Chad."

"Ah, the Dobsons' new foster kid." Burke laughed and the gang paled.

"M-Morro's in foster care?" Zane asked.

"Yeah, must have been a bad boy ta get moved all tha way up here for a fresh start."

"He's an orphan?" Cole gasped as a look of shame on his face, hard with the others.

"Most foster children have parents somewhere." Pixel stated. "He was probably moved up by Social Services so he to get away from them." She added and Lloyd's stomach dropped in horror. Morro was probably all alone in the world, stuck in a strange place, with no-one to turn to; trying to make it in the world all alone and he and when he does meet another one of his own kind they reject him. Before anyone could say another word, Lloyd, Cole, Jay, and Kai ran out of the bistro, leaving everyone in a stunned and confused silence...

* * *

The four teenage boys spent the better part of half an hour tracking the new kid all over the entire city until they followed his scent to the forest at the edge of the city. The giant forest was tremendous, gloomy, and lush. Its canopy was ruled by willow, oak, walnut, and cottonwood, who let through enough dancing beams of sunshine for a hodgepodge of sprouts to rule the insect riddled soils below. Many people were too scared to enter.

Only nature lovers, hikers, and the occasional dog walker ever went in the forest.

Coiling branches clung to many a tree, and a potpourri of flowers, which desperately tried to avoid the shadows, spruced up the otherwise homogeneous scenery. A mixture of beastly sounds, most belonged to foraging animals, added life to the forest, and were out of sync with the sound of the wind blowing gently through the forest. Many normal humans had gotten lost in the dense green world, but Lloyd and the others knew this place like the back of their hands.

They decided to split up, hoping to cover more ground.

Jay and Lloyd went to search closer to the road while Cole and Kai went deeper into the forest. As they walked along the empty road, Lloyd suddenly grabbed his friend's arm and pointed further up the road where they saw Morro Ren walking along the edge of the road, his head down. They knew must have smelled or heard them, so he was simply ignoring them.

"Morro!" Lloyd shouted as they ran to catch up to him.

"Don't worry, I'm out of here." He growled, still looking at his feet as he picked up the pace.

"Please don't! We're sorry, don't go, we can help you." Jay pleaded.

"Help?" He scoffed. "I've had help; counseling and other stupid shit."

"You need to learn to control your wolf self before someone gets hurt... probably you," Lloyd explained, only for them both to jump when Morro suddenly turned around and glared daggers at them

"You're just like the rest of them!" He snarled.

"We know about the Dobsons," Jay replied in a trembling voice. "We know you're alone."

"So?"

"We're like you, you saw that." Lloyd tried to reassure, only for the new kid to shove them away.

"You might like me, you think the same as them!" He snapped. "You're just trying to make me better; but, you know what? What I am, what I turn into, that is way better!" He roared with a big grin on his face. "It's better than anything I've ever known and I'm not letting anyone take that away from me!"

"We're not gonna let you do this," Lloyd warned.

"Go ahead, stop me!" He jeered with a cruel laugh. "Use your wolfy powers and see how long it takes for someone to find out what you are; because no one at school knows your little secret, do they?" He asked and they looked away, their thoughts drifting to Pixel for a brief second. "I thought not; I've got nothing to lose here, unlike you." He smirked before taking off into the forest at full speed.

"Hey!" Jay cried as they chased after him.

"Stop!" Lloyd called as he disappeared into the trees. If they hadn't been werewolves Lloyd and Jay might have lost him, if not for their incredible sense of smell, or Morro's cheap cologne. They quickly tracked him down and before the smug kid could even blink he was tackled by them both. They all cried out and grunted as they rolled down the hill and crashed into the dirt trail. After they managed to untangle themselves, Lloyd was shocked to see Pixel and Zane standing in the middle of the trail with Miss Jinro's forest stakeout class.

Seconds later Kai and Cole came running over the hill and into the awkward tension.

"Sorry, we're late, everyone." Kai weakly chuckled. "Seen any squirrels yet?"

"No, you lot have scared off every animal for miles." Miss Jinro glared before turning to the group of students. "I'm sorry, everyone, we'll have to come back another day." She sighed as they walked away, leaving the gang, Pixel, and Morro alone. As soon as the teacher and class were gone, Pixel glared and advanced towards the group of boys.

"Well done, guys! This was something important to me and Zane." She snapped.

"There's something important we have to do." Cole tried to explain.

"Like what?"

"Morro is more important than any club." Lloyd glared. "The thing is... Morro and I... are related?" He quickly lied, shocking everyone. "Distant cousins; he's the black sheep of the family, and I didn't want him here, so I treated him badly, which is why he lashed out and trashed the classroom."

"We don't have to be best friends, but Morro's here now," Zane added.

"OK." Jay smiled.

"Sure." Pixel sighed.

"Welcome to Ninjago." Cole smiled as he gave the new kid a firm handshake.

"You really don't like soccer?" Kai suddenly asked. Everyone stared at him for a few seconds before they all burst out laughing, Morro included...

* * *

Later that evening, as the sun was starting to set, casting it's beautiful orange and shadows among the forest, instead of going home with Zane and Pixel, Lloyd and the others stayed in the forest to have a talk with Morro. There were things they needed to sort out.

"So... where you from?" Kai asked.

"My parents used to live in Stiix; they... they died when I was two," Morro mumbled, his eyes fixed at the rustling branches of the trees.

"And nobody knows what you are?" Cole asked in shock and awe when he shook his head.

"So, what did you do for the full moon last night?" Jay asked.

"I couldn't stay in my bedroom, could I?" He scoffed. "I climbed out of my window and made for the forests."

"So it was your paw-print that Pixel found!" Lloyd gasped; none of them would have been nieve enough walk so close to the city in wolf form.

"Was it your first full moon change?" Asked Cole sympathetically, knowing how scared he was for his first full moon transformation.

"Second." He replied. "The first got me kicked out of my last foster home."

"What happened?" Jay asked.

"Don't know." He shrugged. "I went to bed and woke up in a ditch naked; turns out I trashed my bedroom, so they kicked me out." He mumbled before clearing his throat and straightening up. "Anyway, what about you? I mean, full moons must be epic out here."

"Yeah, they're pretty cool." Cole shrugged.

"Well, I and Nya haven't started transforming yet." Lloyd sighed.

"So, I know more about this stuff than you do?" He laughed.

"Yeah, you're the expert." Kai laughed. "That's why you lost it with Chad in front of half the school."

"I didn't know that could happen." Morro glared. "I only thought werewolves went hairy at the full moon."

"We feel the urge to change when we feel threatened or angry too," Jay explained. "Learn to control it, and you can transform whenever you want."

"How do you know all this stuff?"

"Our parents tell us." Kai shrugged and Morro's eyes grew to the size of saucers.

"You have parents like us?" He cried.

"Well, sort of." Lloyd winced and turned the others, who all gave their nods of approval. "I live with my Mom and uncle who are like us, Kai lives his sister and his parents are werewolves too but they're usually out of town on business, Cole lives with his dad but Lou's human, Zane lives with his dad who's one of us and Jay lives with his parents, but they're both humans."

"I'm adopted but they know what I am and they don't care." Jay quickly added when he saw Morro's confused look.

"We were all born this way, you're normal." Lloyd smiled. "Everything you thought made you a freak: sight, hearing, speed, sense of smell, they're all completely normal for a werewolf; if you stay you'd have a pack, at last, people to teach you."

"So, say I did stick around, only for a bit, no promises." He quickly said when he saw the hopeful looks on their faces. "No rules, no lectures, you can keep your group hugs and your big, furry family, I'll do things my way."

"A lone wolf, huh?" Kai smirked. "I think you and I are gonna get on great."

"Next time you lose control over your wolf self, what happens then?" Cole asked.

"Well, that'll be an interesting day, won't it?" Morro smirked as he got up and walked away. Lloyd and the others shared a nervous look, worrying about what the new day would bring...


	2. Mysterious Developments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Morro meets with Lloyd's mother and uncle, the pack soon discovers some startling truths about other werewolves; but have they found out in time to rescue Pixel and Dareth?

Pixel glared as she furiously scrolled through her hundreds of different pictures her hidden cameras had picked up. A few months ago, she and Zane had set up nearly a dozen hidden cameras around the giant forest for their nature club to help observe animals in their natural environment, but for her, it was more to help her hunt her mysterious 'beast', not that the teachers knew that. Unfortunately, it seemed like it was another night of dead ends.

All the cameras had picked up that night were birds, a few deers, and other small woodland creatures.

The cameras were motion activated which was both a blessing and a curse. It helped store the battery life, but it also meant that if anything moved in front of them they would set off, including falling leaves, which was become a big problem as it was the middle of Fall. She was about to give up and head to bed when her eyes suddenly caught something in the last picture. Hidden just behind the log a recently fallen tree was a dark shadow in the new morning light.

Frowning, she carefully enhanced the picture and gasped at what she saw.

She had it now...

* * *

Later that morning Lloyd believed things seemed to have calmed down for the time being. He had told his family about Morro and his circumstances and they were happy for him to stay on their territory. He'd spoken to the others and it seemed to be the same with them. Jay's parents were over the moon at the thought of Jay making another friend. Cole's dad just didn't want to know. Zane's dad was concerned but trusted his son's instincts.

Kai and Nya were unable to contact their parents but Nya reassured them that they wouldn't have a problem with it either.

Lloyd yawned as he leaned against the window of his mother's jeep. All this worrying about Morro had kept him up so late that he ended up missing the school bus and had to get a ride. He and Jay were the only ones who faced this problem as they were the only ones who caught the bus. Cole had his own car, Kai got a lift with Nya on her bike and Zane's dad drove him to school on his way to work. He sighed as Misako pulled up outside the school just as the bus was and all the kids were running around in the front of the building.

"Thanks, Mom." He smiled as she gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Next time you miss the bus, you can walk to school!" She laughed as he grabbed his bag.

"If I ran, I'd get here before the bus!" He counted. Some days he really wanted to do that, but he knew his mom and uncle would have a fit if they found out.

"Don't forget to invite Morro round for dinner." She said. "We need to talk to him about transforming safely."

"Just... let me talk to him first." He pleaded.

"No, Lloyd, invite him, Kai and Nya round." She insisted. "I've already spoken to Cole, Jay, and Zane's parents and they're letting them come for dinner too." She explained and began looking at all the students running around outside. "Which one is he anyway?" She asked before taking a big sniff. Almost instantly her eyes snapped to Morro, who was standing in a dark corner, glaring at the other students.

"Can't hide anything from a werewolf." Lloyd glared.

"Poor child, imagine going through all that on your own." She sighed sadly.

"Look, Mom, I've got to go." He said and made to leave before she grabbed his arm.

"This is serious." She stated firmly. "He could expose us all."

"Mom, he's not an idiot." He glared before letting out a defeated sigh. "Look, I'll talk to him, just promise not to embarrass him."

"Of course not, I'm not entirely without tact." She scoffed playfully as he climbed out of the jeep. He was halfway to the doors when all of a sudden Misako's car horn beeped loudly, getting everyone's attention. "Tell him Wednesday's hog roast night!" She shouted before driving off. Lloyd glared at the back of her jeep as a blush spread across his face and the other students started snickering at him...

* * *

After finally meeting up with Jay and Zane, they and Lloyd went to find the others. They didn't have to look very far, however, as the found them in the hallway with Pixel, surrounded by a group of students. As soon as Nya spotted them they went cold when the saw the rage in her eyes. If there was one thing anyone in the entire school feared above all else it was the wrath of Nya Smith.

"Hey guys, come check this out!" She smiled through clenched teeth.

"Uh-oh." Jay gulped as they walked over to see what the fuss was about. As soon as they got close enough, Pixel smiled and showed them a large picture of a dark, dog-like creature huddled just behind a log. They all immediately went pale when they saw it. Now they knew why Nya was so pissed. Pixel had printed off dozens of copies of this picture and was handing them out to the rest of the students.

"Incredible, isn't it?" She beamed, oblivious to the terror her friends felt. "Proof at last."

"Yeah..." Lloyd smiled weakly.

"It's so scary! Where did you get it?" A freshman girl asked in awe.

"My camera took it this morning." She boasted a look of pure joy and pride on her face.

"It's amazing!" A sophomore boy exclaimed.

"It looks like a wolf." His friend added.

"Were you scared?" One of the cheerleaders asked.

"I've been up on the moors searching for proof for years." Pixel stated. "Plus this was taken by a motion-activated camera I had set up a few months ago."

"You call this proof?" A voice laughed and everyone turned to see Harumi Jade and her entourage smirking at them.

"Yes, I call it proof, what do you call it?" Pixel glared.

"Photoshop?" One of the cheerleaders laughed.

"You can laugh all you like, but I've got the card from the camera in my locker with the original raw files; you can't fake those!" She desperately insisted.

"Fine, let's see it, then." Harumi jeered and the crowd followed Pixel down the hall toward her locker, only to stop when they all saw her locker door wide open. The pale teen swiftly ran over to her locker but was devastated to find the card from the camera was missing.

"It was right here!" She cried.

"Oh, maybe the monster took it?" One of the students mocked and the rest erupted into laughter.

"Knock it off," Cole growled as he and the rest of the gang gathered around in front of the distraught Pixel Borg.

"Someone took it!" She bellowed as tears gathered in her bright green eyes.

"Pixel, leave it, they're not worth it." Zane soothed as he slowly pulled her away. Seeing the fun was over, Harumi smiled in satisfaction as she and her cheerleaders walked away and the rest of the small crowd quickly dispersed as well, all the while snickering and joking about it.

"No! It's real! I'll find the card!" Pixel screamed as she violently pulled herself out of Zane's grip.

"Pix, it's OK," Nya said.

"No! They believed me! No-one's believed me before!"

"We believe you, and you know the truth!" Kai stated. "That's all that matters!"

"No! This is the closest that I'd ever been, and the proof is on that card!" She sobbed as she angrily threw the crumpled picture to the floor and took off running down the halls with Zane and the other boys chasing after her. Nya stayed behind, trying to think of how she had gotten that picture. Thanks to Zane, they knew where Pixel's cameras were so they could avoid them during a full moon. According to the time stamp on the picture, it was taken just as the sun rose this morning.

Her brother and the others made an effort to only transform on the full moon.

She glared when she saw Morro smirking at her from further down the hall. Stuffing the picture into her pocket, she stomped over to him and shoved him up against the lockers.

"I know you took it." She hissed.

"Yeah, you can thank me later." He smirked, looking really proud of himself.

"You made Pixel look like a total idiot." She glared and her temper skyrocketed when he simply shrugged in response. "If you weren't wolfing out in the woods, she wouldn't have a picture in the first place!"

"It wasn't me!" He quickly said, his smug smile dropping instantly.

"Then who was it?" She growled. "Our pack hasn't been sighted for years, then you come along and suddenly Pixel's got a picture, come on!"

"It couldn't be one of your brother's friends?"

"They don't wolf out in public!" She snapped. "You took that memory card to cover your own back."

"I took it to protect us but if you'd rather protect your idiot friend's reputation, then go ahead." He huffed before pushing passed her and disappearing in the mob of students. Nya glared at his back before sighing and went to look for the others...

* * *

It took some time but the boys finally located Pixel, still in tears, as she fiddled with a photocopier in the printing room. Zane motioned for the others to stay back for the moment as he stepped inside and wrapped a comforting arm around her.

"Are you OK?" He asked, wincing when he suddenly realized what he said.

"Oh, yes, I'm fine, apart from the fact I'm a laughing stock and I've got a detention tomorrow!" She cried.

"What for?"

"Apparently, photocopying 30 posters is 'misuse of school property'." She huffed.

"Well, I'm not surprised." He replied.

"Plus I got a warning for fighting." She sighed. "I was frisking Chad, he shoved me away, so I slapped him."

"Pixel!"

"I need to find that memory card." She sniffled as Zane pulled her into a hug. The four boys hiding just outside the door shared regretful looks only for Kai to freeze and turn his head toward a sound at the other end of the hall. The others noticed this too and focused their enhanced hearing. It was Harumi and her nasty group of cheerleaders, laughing about something.

"Seriously, she's been obsessed since kindergarten." Harumi snickered.

"It's so sad." One of the cheerleaders laughed

"Not as sad as her dress sense!" Another added and they all erupted into fits of laughter. The red mist descended and Kai made to confront the group of mean girls, only to be stopped by Jay. Not wanting to cause a scene, he, Lloyd, and Cole quickly dragged Kai away before he could tear Harumi to shreds...

* * *

Jay sighed as he walked back home after school. He usually caught the bus, but after such a stressful day it felt nice to take a walk and get some fresh, forest air in his lungs. After they had managed to get Kai to calm down, the gang talked about dinner at Lloyd's house tomorrow night. Normally he liked having dinner at his friends' houses, Kai and Nya's mostly, but he knew how important this dinner was. Everything had to be perfect.

If they were lucky they'd have another member to the pack and if not, at least Morro would have some advice and people to turn to when he had questions.

As he looked up, however, his stomach dropped when he realized he was in the exact area the picture Pixel had was taken. After a flash of fear, he told himself that he was safe. Pixel was looking for a monster, not a teenage boy. He took a breath but he couldn't smell any werewolf here. Whoever it was must not have stayed here too long. He was about to leave when he suddenly picked up on a very familiar scent only a few feet from him.

He walked over to the log and looked over to see Pixel Borg curled up behind it, silently crying.

"Are you ok?" He asked, causing her to jump, but she quickly relaxed when she saw who it was.

"Please, just go away Jay." She sniffed as she tried to wipe her tear-stained cheeks. The freckled teen frowned and instead of doing what she wanted, he carefully hopped over the log and sat next to her. She didn't say anything, however, and looked at the camera clutched tightly in her hand. He realized why she was all the way out here now.

"Why are you so interested in this?" He asked the question everyone was wondering; he knew she had told Zane but no one else. She gave him a cold stare for a few moments before releasing a heavy sigh.

"I was seven." She started as she stared off into the woods. "I was on this camping trip with the local girl scouts, not far from here actually, all the tents were arranged in a little circle and I was sharing with Harumi-"

"Harumi? From school Harumi?!" He exclaimed. Last he checked, Harumi would rather die than be seen with Pixel or any of his friends.

"Yeah, she was my best friend once upon a time." She chuckled bitterly. "Anyway, we'd all gone to bed for the night but I couldn't sleep, there were sounds of things outside, probably badgers and stuff, but you know how your imagination plays tricks; I was playing shadow monsters then there was a real shadow on the outside of our tent."

"I'd be scared to death."

"So was I; I turned off my torch and it came closer until it was right over us; I thought it was just one of my friends so I unzipped the tent to have a look and there it was." She shivered. "This... monstrous face! Hairy, with these yellow eyes." She whimpered as the color drained from Jay's face. "I screamed so loudly, it woke up the whole camp, and by the time they got to me, the monster had disappeared, but I managed to freak out the others so much they had to call the whole trip off."

"So...what do you think it was?" He asked after a moment of silence.

"I don't know." She glared. "But I know when I got back to school, everyone had heard and started making fun of me." She scoffed. "I was even sent to a child psychologist."

"What for?"

"I wouldn't shut up about what I'd seen." She sighed. "Everyone said I was just doing it for attention." She growled as fresh hot tears welled up in her eyes again before she willed them away as best she could.

"You know, chocolate helps me when I'm upset about something." Jay smiled as he pulled out a bar of chocolate and offered it to her.

"Are you sure you don't want it?"

"Nah, I'm good."

"What kind of chocolate is it?"

"My Mom made it herself, it's really good, I hope you enjoy it." He smiled as he stood up, grabbed his bag, and took off running home, leaving Pixel alone with her thoughts, camera, and some homemade chocolate...

* * *

When he finally got home he was overjoyed at the sight of his parents' junkyard and their trailer home right next to the gate. The entire junkyard was around the size of around three football fields. The junkyard was rigged with a security system to ward off intruders. Several vehicles and sculptures were also present, being worked on by his dad in his spare time.

They had created a secluded part of the junkyard, far from prying eyes, where Jay could transform under the full moon.

It was full of dog toys and cushions for him to play with. As soon as he stepped inside the trailer he smiled when he saw both of his parents, Ed and Edna Walker, taking stock of their tiny kitchen. Edna Walker was a very kind woman with an aged face, greying brown hair that was tied back in a bun, and green eyes. She wore sharp, light red spectacles, a thick brown coat, and black pants.

Her loving husband, Ed Walker, was well known for his forgetfulness, and he often had to ask his wife to take notes for him.

He had snowy white hair with dark brown eyes. He was wearing a blue long-sleeved shirt with dirty grey overalls. As soon as Edna saw her son, she rushed forward and pulled him into a loving embrace like she did every time he got home from school.

"Hi honey, we were just going food shopping." She smiled warmly.

"So, is this Morrp lad going to Misako's dinner tomorrow?" Ed asked.

"I don't know." Jay sighed as he took his bag and shoes off.

"Make an effort with him, son," Ed suggested. "He could learn a lot from you and your friends."

"He won't listen to us."

"Just be patient with sweety." His mother reassured. "The poor lad's never had a real family, let alone a pack, and I know your dad and I aren't like you or your friends but we all have to look out for each other."

"Yeah, I guess your right." Sighed Jay as he slumped onto the couch.

"Oh, what's wrong dear?" She asked when she saw the troubled look on her son's face.

"I... I'm just fed up with lying all the time, it's not cool." He frowned. "Pixel got teased again and we can't even tell her what we are, it's killing Zane."

"We understand son, but you know it's too risky." Ed reminded the teen. "Perhaps one-day werewolves and humans can live together with all these secrets and lies, but until that day comes you have to remain secret."...

* * *

The next day at school Pixel was a lot more level-headed and was walking around school with a small smile on her face. That talk with Jay had really lifted her spirits, sometimes it helped to have someone to talk to. It was lunch now and everyone was either sat down or queueing up to get something to eat. Near the front of the queue were Pixel and Zane.

"Hello Pixel, are you OK?" Zane asked, noticing she seemed to be in a much better mood than yesterday.

"Of course I am, why do you ask?" She smiled.

"It's just that you were really upset yesterday and I thought you might've gone on a rampage for the memory card?"

"No worries, I've got it all planned." She grinned. "We'll go back to the woods this weekend and get an even better picture! You, me, and the others, maybe even Morro!"

"Morro?"

"Well he is Lloyd's cousin and I thought it would be a great chance for us all to get to know each other better." She explained as the lunch lady splatted some kind of green goop and a salad on her tray. "Remember Zane, Saturday night, and bring a camera." She ordered before walking over to their table. Further down the line stood Morro. He was anxiously looking up to the front at all the food, desperately looking for something that wasn't there.

He was so focused on the food that he didn't even notice Lloyd walking up to him.

"Hi." The blonde teen greeted, "You alright?"

"I'm really sorry about the memory card." Morro quickly said.

"You were right to have taken it," Lloyd reassured as he looked around and leaned into Morro's personal space. "Can you just come to dinner tonight?" He asked in a whisper. "The others are coming, Mom and Uncle Wu want to talk to us about transforming safely; I know it's really, really embarrassing, but we should just get it out the way."

"Out of the way, yeah," Morro said, not even giving the other boy a glance.

"And when you change, the girls are going to braid your hair." He lied, trying to see if Morro was even paying attention. "With ribbon and we'll take lots of pictures?"

"Cool." He smiled dumbly until Lloyd made him face him.

"You're not even listening to me, are you?" He snapped.

"Do you know what's on the menu?" Morro quickly asked, mush to Lloyd's confusion.

"Uh, I think Wednesday's veggie day." He replied as Morro let out a frustrated sigh. "Meat." Lloyd gasped in realization.

"Where?!" Morro cried as he grabbed the teen's arms in desperation.

"You've got cravings." Lloyd smiled in understanding.

"They're vegetarians, Lloyd," Morro whined. "My foster parents... vegetarians."

"Well, Wednesday's hog roast night." He smirked when Morro turned to him with wide eyes. "You know, where you get a whole pig and roast it? With all the trimmings." He teased.

"A whole pig?" He asked in awe, practically drooling right there and then.

"You up for it?" He asked and nearly laughed when Morro nodded vigorously. As they stepped up to the front of the line, Morro nearly turned as green as all the vegetables laid out in front of them.

"I-I can't look at another vegetable." He gagged as he ran out of the cafeteria. Lloyd just rolled his eyes with a small chuckle and got him lunch...

* * *

After lunch, everyone, including Morro met up in the hallway and were walking to the next classes when they suddenly saw a group of students laughing and gathering at the end of the hall. Knowing something was going on, and were horrified at what they saw. Someone had printed horrible posters of Pixel, labeling her as the mysterious monster in the forest and posted them all over the walls. Poor Pixel could only stare at the posters of horror as tears started welling up in her eyes.

The others, however, were practically breathing fire and brimstone.

It didn't take them long to locate the culprits. Harumi and her squad of cheerleaders were stood against the wall full of posters with shit-eating grins on their faces as they posed like celebrities on a runway.

"Were you frightened?"

"It was the most terrifying thing I've ever seen in my life!" Harumi exclaimed when her eyes landed on a distraught Pixel. "OMG! It's here! Save yourselves!" She laughed when all of a sudden Pixel let out an enraged cry and pounced on the lead cheerleader. Harumi screamed as she and Pixel fell to the ground but no one made a move to help either of them.

"What on earth is going on here?" Miss Koko shouted as she seemingly appeared out of nowhere and pulled the two girls apart.

"She just attacked me!" Harumi cried as she quickly turned on the crocodile tears.

"That monster's real and I'm going to prove it!" Pixel screamed as Nya and Jay held her back.

"Well, you can all do what you want after detention." Miss Koko stated with a hard glare as she turned to the cheerleaders. Pixel let out a scream as she pushed passed the other students and ran down the hall with the boys chasing after her. Nya fixed the laughing mean girls with an enraged scowl before chasing after her friends. When she finally found them, she saw Pixel rummaging through her locker as tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Please, not tonight." Zane pleaded. "I thought we were going this weekend?"

"What's going on?" Nya asked.

"Pix what to go look for her monster tonight instead," Kai replied.

"The monster could be gone by the weekend." She sniffled.

"We can't make it tonight." Lloyd sighed. "We've got this dinner thing with my Mom and Uncle Wu."

"Why?"

"My Mom wants to meet with Morro and she's invited the others as well."

"Oh, so I guess my invitation got lost in the mail?" She glared.

"Pix it's not like-"

"No, no I get it, I'll just go with Dareth." She suddenly said as the said boy walked passed them.

"Wait, what?" He asked in confusion. Dareth Marriott had smooth, glossy brown hair with chocolate brown eyes and a proud smile. He wore a light brown shirt, with the edges of the clothing lined with gold, and a star emblem on the back. He also wore a golden necklace with a star in the middle and his pants had symmetrical dark brown and elaborate gold printings. His family was incredibly wealthy, owning several businesses all around Ninjago and he was good friends with Lloyd and the others.

"How would you like to join me in the forest tonight, doing a little bit of tracking?" Pixel asked.

"Uh... sure, not like I got anything better to do." Dareth shrugged.

"Good, we meet at Yin Yang Bistro at five o'clock." She smirked and left her friends standing alone in the hallway, the guilt weighing them down...

* * *

That night everyone had gathered around at Lloyd's house where they waited for Morro to arrive. While Lloyd, Misako, and Wu finished the dinner and set the table, Kai and Nya were sat on the couch, messing with their phones, and Zane and Jay were just chatting in the corner. They had cooked different types of chicken, ham, steaks, a hog roast, and many other portions of meat. As the minutes dragged on, Cole tried to silence his grumbling stomach by munching on a slice of ham from the table.

"Cole! Leave some for Morro!" Wu chastised when the teen took a big bite out of the slice.

"Mom, I think he'll live." Lloyd sighed.

"We've gone to a lot of trouble for this, after all, the 'steaks' are high!" Misako laughed as she placed a plate full of freshly cooked steaks. Lloyd just rolled his eyes and made to grab his phone to see what was taking Morro so long when there was a sudden knocking on the door. Jay went to answer it and came back with an awkward Morro. As soon as the income saw the table full of meat, however, he almost dove for the table before quickly remembering whose house he was in.

"Help yourself, honey, have as much as you like." Misako chuckled when she noticed the boy's hesitation.

Lloyd had explained to them about Dobsons' dietary requirements and they knew that could have a toll on a werewolf. They had to eat meat. The second she said that he ran to the table and started gorging on the different kinds of meat. Everyone just shrugged it off and took their seats. The dinner went off to a good start, with everyone talking and laughing and just enjoying themselves.

"It's got to be cool having a family you can be yourself around," Morro said with a hint of a smile.

"You're more than welcome any time you want and if you've got any questions just ask," Wu reassured as he eyes the teen warily.

"Um, on the full moon, do you change in the house? In here?" He asked and they all burst out into fits of laughter.

"No, we've got a secure room in the basement." Misako smiled.

"The basement?" He asked. The group just smiled and led a confused Morro down to the basement. The heavy steel door clanked opened to reveal a large underground space. It had a dim ceiling light with a solid dirt floor. It was two old armchairs that had clearly been chewed on and a small shelf just tall enough to be out of a wolf's reach with a few books on it. At the far end of the room were two iron doors on the roof of the basement that led outside.

"Do you like it?" Lloyd asked as Morro stepping into the basement and looked around. "We call it the den, it's got everything a wolf desires and it's safe for us and, well, for everyone else."

"It's all about responsibility," Wu stated.

"It's a bit small for all of you isn't it?" Morro asked.

"Well only Misako and Wu stay here, and I guess Lloyd when he starts transforming," Kai replied.

"So where do the rest of you go?"

"We transform on Zane's Dad's property in the woods and Jay changes at his parents' place," Cole said. "We could speak to Dr. Julien and see if he's alright with you staying with us during a full moon."

"Being a werewolf is not just about giving in to our primal desires." Wu suddenly said; Dr. Julien's willingness to allow his son and his friends to run wild into the forest during a full moon had always rubbed him the wrong way. "It's about being a responsible part of a wider community."

"Indeed, we've got a rich heritage and culture." Misako smiled as she walked over and grabbed one of the books from the shelf. "We have books here you won't find in the school library! Rome was founded by the werewolves Romulus and Remus, you know."

"Don't you just wanna run free sometimes?"

"Yes, but most of us agree it's better to tame our instincts." Misako smiled.

"Most of us?" Nya asked and it didn't go unnoticed when both adults went pale.

"I just meant that-"

"No, you said 'most of us'! You always told us we all kept ourselves locked away!" Kai interrupted. Both Misako and Wu shared a worried look and it was then that Zane suddenly got a good idea at what they were talking about.

"There are other werewolves that don't lock themselves away aren't there?" He finally asked.

"Is that true?" Jay asked.

"We were going to tell you after Lloyd and Nya transformed." Misako quickly said, trying to salvage what she could. "We just didn't want to scare you."

"Scare us?" Nya asked and Wu sighed in defeat.

"There are other werewolves who don't quite share the same values as us; they're wild werewolves, but they're very rare and most of us agree it's better to be a useful part of society, instead of hating humans and hating us," Wu explained.

"They're very dangerous," Misako added and Nya gasped as she turned to Morro.

"It really wasn't you in that photo?" She asked.

"I told you it wasn't." He glared when he and the other teens caught on to what she was suggesting.

"Pixel and Dareth are out there!"

"What's wrong?" Misako asked. Nya bolted back up the stairs and came back with the picture Pixel had taken.

"Look! Pixel took it the other day." She glared as Misako and Wu examined the pictures. "I thought it was Morro because I didn't know about wild werewolves!"

"Where did they go?" Wu asked and everyone turned to Jay and Zane as they were the only ones who had any idea where that particular camera was but they just shrugged.

"We can't explain, but we can find it." Jay quickly said as they ran back upstairs.

"No, you two stay here!" Misako growled as the adults grabbed their coats and the car keys. "If there's a wild werewolf out there, we'll sniff it out." She added as she and Wu hopped into the jeep and sped off into the darkness.

"This is ridiculous, we know where they are," Zane exclaimed.

"Mom and Uncle Wu know what they're doing!" Lloyd reassured.

"In their car?" Kai asked. "If that wolf's out there, he's using his senses and he'll hunt down Dareth and Pixel."

"We can get there first," Jay stated. The group all stared at each other before they sighed in defeat.

"You're right, but no wolfing out, Pixel's got her camera," Cole warned. Zane and Jay nodded and took off running at full speed...

* * *

Pixel shivered as she trudges through the dense, cold forest in the dead of night. A fog had started rolling through the trees, obscuring her vision. She had told her father that she was studying at Nya's and wouldn't be back until later that night.

"Shut up! You'll scare the creature away with that racket!" She hissed as he brushed himself off. "Have you got the bait?"

"Uh... I've got some sandwiches, cheese, lots of chocolate." He grinned weakly as she let out an irritated sigh. She was about to say something when all of a sudden a twig snapped somewhere nearby, send some nearby birds and the two teens into a panic.

"What was that?"

"Probably just a badger or something." Pixel gulped as they looked around, trying to find what it was but the fog had gotten too thick.

"I-I think we should go." Dareth whimpered. "The fog's getting thicker, we aren't going to see anything." He pointed out when all of a sudden a low growling sounded off very close to them. If it was a badger is was very big. Just then a loud howl echoed throughout the forest.

"It's the monster, it's my monster." She grinned like a kid in a candy store as she readied her camera.

"I'm not hanging around to find out!" Dareth cried and attempted to run but she grabbed his arm.

"If you run, it'll chase you!" She warned him and they stayed huddled together as the fog thickened, preventing them from seeing anything even two feet in front of them. Just then they heard more than one pairs of running footsteps and they all screamed when two figures suddenly ran out the fog and towards them, but they stopped when they saw it was just Jay and Zane. Neither of them looked even the least bit tired, despite them having just run all the way from Lloyd's.

"Are you OK?" Jay asked as she and Dareth took deep breaths.

"We would be if you stopped jumping out at us!" Dareth snapped.

"What are you doing here? I thought you had dinner at Lloyd's?" Pixel asked. Before either boy could respond, however, another growl was heard, not as close as before but still close enough.

"It's the monster!" Dareth screamed as he cowered behind the others.

"Run!" Zane shouted and the four teens took off running, however, Zane and Jay quickly stopped but Pixel and Dareth didn't notice as they disappeared into the dark, fogging forest. The wild werewolf howled again the two teens transformed into their wolf forms.

The looked like ordinary timberwolves except Zane had very light blonde fur and Jay had reddish-brown fur.

They ran off, following the wild werewolf's scent deeper into the woods. They eventually found him not too far away. He was in his wolf form and was noticeably bigger than both of them, he looked around the same size as Cole, with thick pitch black fur. The only things that stood out against the wolf's fur and the darkness of the night were its yellow eyes and it's shining teeth. All three wolves slowly circled each other snarling and baring their teeth, daring each other to make the first move.

Suddenly the black wolf lunged forward and dug its teeth into the back of Zane's neck and threw him to the side.

Immediately, Jay rushed to protect his friend. He snapped at the wild werewolf's neck and ended up pulling tufts of black fur off. The wild wolf yelped as it jumped away and backed up as Jay and Zane advanced towards it. They snarled at each other until the wolf realized it was outnumbered and took off running away. Jay and Zane stood there for a few moments before they changed back to humans. They were naked, covered in dirt and Zane had a bloody wound on the back of his neck.

Jay gave him his scarf to hide it before the two of them quickly found their clothes and redressed themselves before tracking down Pixel and Dareth, who were both huddled in a ditch not too far away.

They had gotten lost and could faintly hear the sound of the wolves fighting so they had tried to hid. As soon as they found each other Pixel gave Zane a tight hug while Jay helped a shaking Dareth to his feet.

"So what do you think it was? It had to be the beast, right?!" She desperately asked and Zane's heart broke.

"Probably... foxes." He forced out, unable to look her in the eyes.

"Yeah, have you ever seen foxes fight?" Jay asked. "We get a few at the junkyard and they really go for it!"

"What I saw was bigger than any breed of fox." She snapped as her gaze drifted into the darkness as the fog began to lift. No one said anything and Zane and Jay led the two monster hunters back towards the dirt trail that led back to the city. They walked in awkward silence for a few minutes until a sudden, low rumbling came from the forest road just ahead of them. They relaxed, however, when the saw Misako's jeep driving up to them.

She pulled up and immediately she and Wu climbed out and inspected the four teens for any injuries.

As soon as they saw Jay and Zane, the two boys flinched at the death glares they received and knew that they were in for it later.

"Is everyone all right?" Asked Misako, fear, and concern evident in her voice.

"What are you doing here?" Dareth asked.

"We were... going for a drive because Misako likes bird watching." Wu quickly lied.

"Let's get you, kids, home, your parents must be going crazy." Misako smiled and everyone bundled into the jeep. As they drove back home, Zane and Jay looked out the window in concern, hoping that wild werewolf had gotten the message and was long gone. Pixel was also looking at the passing forset as well, not in fear but in determination. She knew it was up there and she would find it one day...


	3. Family Ties

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A school project reminds Morro of how alone he is without his own werewolf family. When the exhibition is vandalized, suspicion falls on him. Can the others help him clear his name?

Tonight, the school's large gymnasium was packed to the brim with teachers, students, and all their families. It was the school's art exhibition night at Ninjago High School, and the theme was Families in the 21st Century. All kinds of different artworks by students and their perspectives about their families were on display for all to see and admire. Everyone was there. Even Kai and Nya's parents had returned from their business trip for the event.

As soon as they had gotten back Kai and Nya talked to them about Morro and at first, they wanted the lone wolf gone.

Thankfully, their children managed to convince them to give him a chance. The Smith family was stood beside an exhibit Kai and Nya had made explaining their ancestors' legacy as blacksmiths that helped make the city what it was today. Ray Smith had charcoal black spikey hair with a mustache and a small beard and bright amber eyes. He wore a red long-sleeved shirt with dark grey pants and large black boots. Maya Smith had long, dark brown hair that went down to her waist and stunning aqua blue eyes.

She wore a cyan-blue blouse top with midnight blue jeans and matching high heels.

The Garmaddon family exhibit explained how their ancestors first arrived and settled down in the land that would later become Ninjago, technically making them the founders of the city. Zane stood beside his father as the scientist rambled on about his experiments and inventions. Dr. Julien was must older than any of the other parents there. To the unknown, that might have mistaken him for Zane's grandfather. He had bushy snowy white hair, an aged face, and hazel eyes behind a pair of thick glasses.

He wore a white lab coat jacket with smart black pants and shoes.

Jay and his parents' exhibit told people how their junkyard was started and why it was an important part of society. Cole presented his exhibit that showed his father's dancing career from start to now and his mother's life before she passed. The only problem was that the Brookstone teenager was all alone in the crowded gymnasium. His father had yet to show up.

"Your dad not coming?" Kai asked when he noticed Lou's absence.

"He promised to make it this time, no emergencies, no distractions, just me and my dad," Cole said with a bright, hopeful smile. Cole wasn't the only one who was alone, however, Morro's foster parents had yet to make an appearance, but he didn't really care if they came or not, he'd only been living with them for a couple of weeks at the most. Morro's exhibit consisted of beautifully detailed drawings of life in care. What few people knew before tonight was that Morro Ren was an extremely talented artist.

As he was putting the final touches on his own exhibit, Harumi and her cheerleaders walked over to him with large grins on their faces.

They arrived just as Morro was hanging up a detailed sketch of an abandoned child sitting in a dark corner.

"What's that got to do with families?" Harumi asked in slight disgust.

"That's just spooky and weird." One of the cheerleaders added in a similar tone. With a face of thunder, Morro angrily turned it around to the blank side and roughly scribbled a quick picture of a happy stick figure family under a smiling sun.

"Is that 'normal' enough for you?" He snarled and the group of girls scurried away. Seeing all of this, Lloyd excused himself and went to comfort the lone wolf.

"You're not actually going to listen to them, are you?" He asked.

"Why not? You lot do." He snapped, much to Lloyd's confusion. "Pretending to be something you not; you're just like them, shallow and fake." He growled before storming off, leaving Lloyd alone by the abandoned exhibit. Before the blonde teen could react, however, the principal suddenly climbed onto the stand and called for everyone's attention.

"I just want to thank everyone here for coming out and supporting our students in this event." The principal smiled. "The question, 'What does family mean in the 21st Century?' is been something we have been exploring across different subject areas this term; we are very proud of our students' work and I'm sure you will be too." He said before climbing off the stand and everyone went back to looking at the exhibits.

"So, er... is your dad not here?" Jay asked when he saw Cole looking around the gymnasium anxiously.

"He'll be here soon," Cole assured, but the nervous glint in his eyes told another tale. As everyone looked through the different exhibits, the Smith children and the Garmaddon family approached Morro's and were shocked when they saw the vandalism.

"Who's damaged this?" Nya asked, anger clear in her voice.

"He, erm, had some issues with the subject matter," Lloyd said and everyone nodded in understanding.

"Poor kid." Misako sighed and turned to the kids. "We need to get him round more, make sure he knows he's welcome any time, right?"

"Mom! For the past two weeks, he thought he was the only werewolf in the world." He reminded her. "Give him some time to adjust, will you?

"Morro needs to be around his own kind," Wu stated. "Pack animals don't do well on their own."

"What's that smell?" Kai suddenly asked and everyone turned to see Harumi and her cheerleaders posing in front of one of her own exhibits. Harumi's exhibit showed how her great-grandfather started a business when Ninjago was first starting to grow and this had helped contribute to the foundation of the city with some of her parents' products on display. Including some strong-smelling perfume. The Jade family had expanded their business ever since, making them the richest and most famous people in the entire city.

With Harumi were her parents and their bodyguard.

Ellen Jade had white hair like her daughter's Harumi's with stunning jade eyes and a pale complexion. Her delicate jade green dress flowed from top to bottom and had a Queen Anne neckline. The dress easily reached the ground in the front, concealing her pearl white high heels. Richard Jade had greying light brown hair with a matching mustache and silvery-blue eyes. He was wearing a standard white shirt with a black tie. He wore a dark emerald suit with matching pants and a sharp pair of split-toe derbies and an expensive gold watch.

Their bodyguard, Hutchins, also wore a dark green suit with a black eye patch and a stern look in his eye.

Harumi noticed her parents looking at her work and smiled, expecting some kind words. However, instead, she watched, heartbroken, as her parents and Hutchins simply walked away and began looking at Cole's exhibit with much more interest.

"Is this your father?" Richard asked when saw a picture of Cole's dad, Lou, with his dance group, 'the Royal Blacksmiths'.

Lou Brookstone was a professional dancer with dark gray-hair, still in the prime of his life, with well-defined cheeks and small wrinkles near his eyes. He had bushy eyebrows like Cole, and also boasted a small mustache. He was wearing a brown suit, a white shirt, and a red bowtie. He also owned a Royal Blacksmiths uniform, consisting of a fancy tuxedo and a red bow. The rest of the evening went off very well until it was time to send everyone home.

One by one, students and their families left the gymnasium, leaving their exhibits to be cleaned up in the morning.

Soon only the Smiths, Walkers, and Cole were left. Noticing that Cole was alone, Kai walked over to see if he was okay.

"Is your dad still not here?" He asked the raven-haired boy.

"He's stuck in traffic." He sighed in frustration. "He'll be here soon, it's cool."

"Well, have a great weekend." Kai smiled as he patted his friend on the back and left with his family and the Walkers, leaving Cole alone in the gymnasium...

* * *

The next morning the students approached the gymnasium, only to see the doors closed with police tape wrapped around them. Without thinking, one of the cheerleaders ripped the tape off and slammed the doors open and everyone gasped at what they saw. The entire gymnasium and all their exhibits were completely and utterly trashed. The exhibits were destroyed with items such as Harumi's perfume bottles and Jay's parents' inventions scattered all over the floor.

As the students stood there in shock, trying to take it all in when suddenly the principal ran in with a face like thunder.

"No-one is supposed to be in here! Just don't touch anything!" He ordered as he ushered the students out and closed the doors again.

"What happened?" Jay asked.

"Someone came back here last night after the exhibition closed." The principal sighed. "All the security cameras caught was a glimpse of someone running away but at that speed, in the dark, it could be anyone." He explained. "This school has a zero-tolerance policy towards vandalism, if school property is not treated with respect, then privileges will be withdrawn from the entire school; the end of semester disco is canceled." He glared and the students erupted into a frenzy.

"Sir! You can't do that!" Chad cried.

"Unless the vandal is found." The principal added. "So if any of you know anything, now is your chance to speak up." He said but everyone remained quiet, with a heavy sigh he shooed them away. For the rest of the day, the students couldn't concentrate. They were too busy trying to figure out who it was who damaged and destroyed their parents' things. As Kai walked out of his history class, he was suddenly pushed aside by Chad and his gang.

He watched as they marched over to Morro, who was too busy looking for something in his locker to notice the boys making a beeline for him.

He was suddenly grabbed by two of Chad's friends as they shoved him up against the lockers.

"Hey, freak! Is it true you smashed up a classroom on your first day?" Chad sneered, catching the other students' attention.

"I knocked some stuff over, why do you care?" Morro growled.

"Where were you Friday night?"

"It's none of your business."

"If you're innocent, tell us where you were."

"I can tell you where he was," Harumi smirked as she stepped out of the crowd of students. "I saw him, skulking around the playground like a thief." She hissed but before they could interrogate him any further, Morro pushed the boys off him and speed-walked away and disappeared around the corner. Kai frowned and quickly chased after him. He eventually found the lone wolf leaning against a wall just outside the school as he glared a hole into the sky.

As soon as Morro saw the amber-eyed teen he tried to walk away, only for him to grab his green jacket.

"Is this true? Was it you?" Kai asked with a fiery glare.

"No, it wasn't!" He snarled before taking a deep breath to calm down. "I went out to get some air and then I came back, I looked in, and saw you guys and with all your parents."

"Why didn't you come in?"

"Just... I'm not ready for all that." He sighed.

"All right, I believe you," Kai replied, knowing that this was all still new for Morro.

"Thanks a bunch, not that it matters." He huffed before he sulked off to who knows where...

* * *

Later that afternoon after school, the gang, minus Morro were all gathered at the Ying Yang Bistro, discussing what had happened at the school. Kai explained what Morro had said and insisted that the lone wolf was innocent.

"We need to find the person who actually did it," Kai stated, leaving no room for argument.

"How?" Nya asked.

"I don't know yet, but I'm not going to stand around while the wrong person gets accused."

"If he is the wrong person." Pixel pointed out.

"What? We're taking Chad and Harumi's word now?" Zane asked.

"Some of you might not trust him, but I believe him and he's part of our family." Lloyd agreed. "We need just evidence."...

* * *

That night Cole got home and found his father sat in the living room waiting for him. They both lived in a large apartment above his father's dance studio when the man spent most of his time. Cole sighed as he removed his coat, shoes, and bag and went to see what his dad wanted from him now. He took a seat across from his dad and braced for it.

"I received a phone call from the school today," Lou said coldly.

"Oh really?" Cole shrugged.

"Was it you who trashed the art exhibition?"

"No!" Cole exclaimed, shocked that his own father would accuse him of that.

"Well, where were you last night? You didn't get home till late last night."

"Yeah, because I was waiting for you to come to pick me up like you promised so I didn't bring my car so I had to walk all the way home 'cause I didn't have any money for the bus!" Cole growled. "Thanks for that by the way!"

"Cole, I'm sorry, you know I'd have been there if I could." Lou tried to ease the tension.

"Yeah, yeah like you said the time before that and the time before that and so on." The strong teen laughed bitterly as he buried his face in his hands. They sat like that in silence for a few minutes before Cole exhaled loudly and looked his father in the eyes. "Dad, can we talk about Mom?" He finally asked and Lou stiffed up suddenly. It was well known that Lilly Brookstone was a sore subjected to the father and son and she was almost never mentioned.

The only reason Cole was bringing it up now was that all the take of families recently got him thinking.

He hardly knew anything about his mother, aside from the few bits and pieces other people had told him. The two stared each other down for a few seconds for Lou sighed in defeat.

"Alright, alright, you see Cole, your mother was a very special woman from the moment she was born; you see, your mother was born during a full moon." He explained and Cole gasped. When a werewolf is born during a full moon while their mothers are in wolf form means that they would be able to transform since birth, but that was incredibly rare as nowadays expecting mothers were induced close to their due dates before a full moon.

"How did you meet?" Cole asked.

"It was when we were in 4th grade, I was a new transfer student and as soon as I saw her realized something was strange about her, but I couldn't put my finger on it." He sighed as his expression went dark. "I was always a curious child so I tried to befriend her but she wouldn't even talk to me."

"What happened?" Cole asked when he saw the pained expression on his father's face.

"Do you see this scar?" He asked and pointed to the faded scar on his right ear. "One day I pursued her, and when I cornered her at the back of the school when she suddenly transformed into a wolf and inadvertently injured him, leading to a meeting with our parents and the principal."

"What did they say?"

"Well, your mother stayed completely silent, wouldn't look anyone in the eye, as my mother and her father screamed at each other; I knew it was an accident so I told them a stray dog attacked me, absolving Lily of blame, and after a few months of awkward tension the two of us cleared the air and became friends." He explained with a smile on his face.

"Why did she attack you?"

"It was the wolf who attacked me, not my Lilly," Lou stated with a firm glare. "She told me that she liked me the moment she saw me, just as I did with her, but because she was so young she had never felt those kinds of emotions before and the wolf in her interpreted that as a threat; when I cornered her she panicked and the wolf broke free; when we were fourteen she told me everything about werewolves and we started dating soon after and the rest you know."

"Thanks for telling me." Cole smiled weakly as tears welled in his eyes. Lou just nodded and quickly walked away, leaving his son alone...

* * *

The next morning Pixel, Nya, and Zane snuck into the gymnasium to see if they could find some clues on who had trashed the exhibits. The police and teachers had already been through the place and had cleaned up most of the damage, but the teens were hoping they could find something the adults had missed so they could prove Morro's innocence. As soon as they walked in, Nya and Zane gagged and flinched when the lingering smell of Harumi's perfumes burned at their enhanced sense of smell.

Thankfully Pixel didn't notice.

"Why are we here?" Nya groaned trying to hold her breath.

"We have to follow the motive." She replied as she and Zane examined the damaged goods. "If we can work out why someone did this, we can work out who."

"If all the best paintings are damaged, the vandal was jealous, and if one person's work had been picked on, the vandal has a grudge against them," Zane explained and everyone's gaze fell on Cole's exhibit. It was by far the most damaged, none of the others even came close. They all shared knowing looks.

"Who has Cole fallen out with recently?"...

* * *

While Pixel, Nya, and Zane were sneaking around the gymnasium, the others were all in their home economics class, going over a projected. The teacher had asked them to bake a type of cake, something Cole was excited for. While the group of friends was talking about things, Harumi suddenly appeared and shot them a sickening smirk.

"You're in trouble, freak." She sneered at Morro, who rolled his eyes.

"Is that right?" He groaned, getting really fed up with Harumi's bullshit. Harumi just smirked at them before walking away. Feeling the tension growing, Cole smiled weakly and offered a tablespoon of cake batter to Morro for him to taste.

"You lot should definitely try it out, it's brilliant." The raven-haired teen smiled.

"Whatever." Morro huffed before he shot up and walked over to the other side of the room, pretending to look at different pots and pans. Lloyd sighed as he excused himself and walked over to Morro.

"Look, Morro, I know you're angry, but don't take it out on Cole." He said with a stern gaze.

"Cole's a lot angrier than I am right now." Morro retorted. "Just ask him."

"What are you talking about?"

"Look at him, it's obviously lying about something." He pointed out and Lloyd turned to look at his friend. "It's a cold day today, nobody else is sweating, so why is he?" He asked and Lloyd saw that it was true, Cole was sweating bullets compared to everyone else. "And you should be able to pick out his heartbeat, it's easily the fastest."

"How do you know about this stuff?"

"Normal humans get hunches when someone's lying, and when you have a new home and a new school every few weeks, it's really useful knowing who's telling the truth." Morro shrugged.

"Yeah, except Cole wouldn't lie," Lloyd growled, and before anyone could say anything, Miss. Koko suddenly walked into the classroom, making everyone stop what they were doing and stare.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I need to speak to Morro Ren." She said and everyone could hear the contained rage in her voice. The teacher nodded and Morro followed Miss. Koko out and back to her office. Lloyd waited for a minute before asking if he could go to the bathroom. The teacher allowed it and the second he was out of the classroom he took off like a bullet towards Miss. Koko. As soon as he got there he leaned against the wall next to the door and used his enhanced hearing to listen in.

"You were seen hanging around last night." Miss. Koko explained.

"I came then I changed my mind." He huffed in annoyance.

"So, Mr. and Mrs. Dobson, they drove you here, and back?"

"I made my own way."

"Did you walk all the way home?" She asked in a condescending tone, not believing him for a minute.

"Don't call me a liar!" He snarled.

"Morro! Calm down!" Lloyd quietly hissed, which only Morro could hear. "Act natural and don't let on that you can hear me."

"What happened on Friday night was a serious matter, Morro, a criminal matter." Koko stated."

"I didn't do it!" He growled and Lloyd could hear his pounding heartbeat.

"You need to calm down." The blonde teen said.

"Shut up!" Morro shouted, directing it at Lloyd; unfortunately, Miss. Koko didn't know that and her mouth fell open in shock.

"I beg your pardon!" She cried and Morro quickly took some deep breaths to calm down before he did something they all regret.

"Y-You can't just accuse me." He said through clenched teeth.

"I'm simply asking you, young man, to explain where you were and why." She said in a firm but kind voice. "I'm trying to help you, Morro, but you're making it very hard for me."

"Keep breathing and stay calm," Lloyd said as he listened to Morro's heartbeat slow down. "Just think about lying in a green field, in the sun." He added causing the other teen to let out a snicker, which only angered Koko more.

"What exactly is so funny about that?" She glared, her patience wearing thin. "Last chance, Morro; where were you last night?" She asked again and Lloyd quickly sent a text to his mother as he instructed Morro what to say.

"I said I came on my own, Lloyd's mom gave me a ride home." He repeated and Koko picked up her desk phone and gave the Garmaddon household a call. After a few minutes of talking to Misako, the teacher let out a sigh and hung up.

"It seems you were telling the truth." She said and with that, she allowed Morro to leave. He found Lloyd waiting for him and as the two of them began to walk back to class they couldn't stop laughing at what had just happened.

"Think about lying in a green field?" The green-haired teen asked with a big smile on his face.

"It worked, didn't it?"

"Well, now they know it wasn't me, it's not our problem." He laughed until Nya, Zane, and Pixel walked over to them with concerned looks.

"Actually, it is," Nya said. "Cole was the last to leave the building last night, his dad never showed up, and his artwork was the worst damaged, photos of him and his dad."

"We'll talk to him, see if there's anyone who could have had it in for him." Pixel said when Chad and his gang suddenly appeared around the corner.

"Couldn't save the freak this time, could you?" He laughed at the group. Having enough of his attitude the group just shrugged the jock off and walked away to find the others...

* * *

That night everyone was gathered at Kai and Nya's apartment, trying to figure out who else could have vandalized the gymnasium now that they knew Morro was in the clear. Ray and Maya had left to return to their business trip that afternoon and had left a note for the children on the fridge. Kai and Nya's apartment was a medium-sized apartment in the middle of the city and was just large enough for both the Smith children and their parents to live in.

It had three bedrooms, a small bathroom, a kitchen, and a small living area.

No one had worked up the nerve to ask Cole yet. He was one of their best friends and they knew he wasn't capable of this, but Pixel said they had to be sure. As they all sat in the living room, eating some pizza, trying to think of who else it could be, Jay suddenly gasped as an idea struck him.

"Remember Harumi's perfumes?" He asked and they all nodded, not really sure where this was going. "The place was flooded with the stuff, the vandal must have walked in it."

"And they wouldn't have been able to completely wash that strong of the smell out their clothes or shoes!" Nya exclaimed as everyone began to put the pieces together as well.

"How are we going to check everybody's shoes?" Pixel asked and the others shared knowing looks.

"Don't worry about it, we'll take care of that." Cole smiled as unbeknownst to him, the other let out small sighs in relief. None of them could get a whiff of any of Harumi's perfume on him so that meant he was also in the clear with Morro. Unfortunately, Pixel didn't have a super nose like the rest of them so she didn't have a way of knowing this.

"Cole, we need to talk about what really happened last night." She suddenly said and the others went pale.

"What?" The buff teen asked.

"We know you were the last one to leave school." She added and his eyes went wide.

"You're kidding me." He asked in disbelief as he looked at the others. "Do you really think I'd do that to other people's work?"

"We're just trying to help you." Pixel said before the others could answer.

"Some friends you are!" Cole growled as he grabbed and stormed out of the apartment without a backward glance. Kai shot Pixel an angry glare before chasing after his friend...

* * *

After searching all Cole's usual hangouts, Kai ran through the city to the only other place he could be. The large, glistening fountain outside of city hall in the dead center of the entire city. Built only a handful of years ago, this fountain at the old town center was there to represent the importance of all generations, both young and old, and what they have to offer. Its position within the city was meant to represent the strong mind and balanced way of life the city strived for.

It was designed by Lilly Brookstone herself, just before she fell ill.

She had accurately captured the natural beauty of the region and used an intricate style to convey her vision in this piece of art. Every element was crafted and created with superior materials from local suppliers, ensuring this monument would continue to be a proud part of the city for generations. Despite it being night the area was brightly lit. There were very few people walking around at this time of night so Kai easily found Cole.

He sat alone on a bench, staring at the fountain with a blank expression on his face.

The raven-haired teen didn't give him a glance as the spiky-haired teen sat next to him.

"I thought I'd find you here." Kai sighed. "Cole, I'm sorry, Pixel shouldn't have jumped to conclusions and we shouldn't have let her accused you."

"Well, no, you shouldn't have." He glared before letting out a heavy sigh. "All I want is my dad, but he's never there when I need him, he won't even tell me why he didn't pick me up last night."

"Yeah, I get it." Kai nodded. "Nya and I hardly see our parents anymore, at least when you go home you know your dad's gonna be there." He laughed and Cole felt like slapping himself.

"Sorry Kai, I forgot." He said but Kai just smiled.

"Don't worry about it, it doesn't even bother me anymore." He shrugged when a shiver suddenly ran through his body. "Can we go back home, I'm freezing my ass off here." He joked, finally getting a chuckle out of Cole.

"Is it alright if I stay here for a bit?" Cole asked, Kai, nodded but stayed where he was, not wanting to leave him alone. Noticing the brown-haired teen was still shivering, he pulled him into a one-armed embrace as they stared at the fountain...

* * *

The next day during school, everyone kept their noses open for a whiff of Harumi's expensive perfumes. By the time Kai and Cole had returned to the Smith's apartment Pixel had gone home in shame after Nya had torn into her for accusing Cole like that without any evidence. Morro quietly laughed to himself as he walked down the empty school halls. Everyone was in classes and he was on his way to the restrooms. Or so he had told the teacher.

As he was walking down the halls, however, he was suddenly hit with a strong smell.

It was so sudden he gagged and covered his noses before he realized what he was smelling. It was the combination of all of Harumi's perfumes from the exhibition. He looked towards the smell and was shocked to see Harumi looking in the small mirror in her locker as she reapplied her makeup. At first, Morro didn't want to believe it. It was her parents' perfumes so of course, she might be wearing some until he realized the smell was solely coming from her shoes.

She must have tried to wash it off when she got home.

Since she didn't have his sense of smell, however, she couldn't tell there was still a lingering scent. His blood began to boil when he came to the conclusion that it was she who destroyed the exhibits. As she finished applying her makeup, she looked up and gave Morro a disgusted look.

"Fuck off, loser!" She scowled as she slammed her locker shut and pushed passed his as she walked away. Morro glared at her back before he ran through the doors in front of him and around to the other side of the school, reappearing through the doors in front of her in fifteen seconds flat. Harumi paused her walking as she took a glance over her shoulder, trying to work out how he had done that.

"I just want to know why you did it." He snarled.

"Get lost." She glared with a slither of fear in her voice as she turned around ran out other doors and down the stairs. When she was halfway down, however, she gasped when she saw Morro waiting for her.

"Did you do all that damage just to get me in trouble?" He asked her but she simply shook her head in disbelief before shoving him out of the way and ran until she was out the school. She turned back to the school and sighed relief when she didn't see him following her; that is until she turned around and screamed when she saw Morro standing there glaring at her. "You've had it in for me since I arrived! You told Koko I was here that night!" He roared.

"You think everything's about you, don't you? Poor little orphan boy!" She cried as her voice cracked slightly. "You don't know how lucky you are! You've got no-one telling you you're not good enough, you're a disappointment!" She snarled, trying to fight back the tears. "If that's a family, who needs one?" She hissed, but Morro didn't say anything, he didn't need to.

"Next time you lose your temper, smash up your own things." He simply said and walked past her to return to school.

"Off to tell on me, are you?" She growled.

"He doesn't have to." A cold voice suddenly said and Harumi's eyes widened as she stiffened up. She slowly turned around and saw her mother standing there with a look of shame and disgust...

* * *

That night most of the students of Ninjago High were packed into the Ying Yang Bistro to celebrate the fact that the end of semester disco was back on. After Morro had tricked Harumi into a confession, her mother had dragged her to the principal's office to explain herself. She was given a month's detention and was forced to pay for the damages with her allowance for the next six months and was probably grounded for the rest of her life.

The gang all laughed as Morro retold the story again.

"And Harumi confessed? Just like that?" Nya asked in between laughs.

"Must be my charming personality," Morro smirked.

"Do you think she'll get expelled?" Pixel asked.

"Not my call."

"She does deserve it though." Zane sighed.

"Yeah, trying to get you done for it," Cole growled.

"Harumi's got problems of her own." Morro sighed, it was the way Harumi shouted at him when she confessed, how broken she sounded, it struck a wrong nerve with him. He never expected someone like Harumi to act like that.

"Like what? Her family's loaded." Jay asked.

"All families have problems." Kai frowned. "It's nothing to do with money."

"Yeah, maybe I'm the lucky one, being on my own," Morro muttered, but everyone heard it.

"You're not on your own." Nya reminded him.

"I-I've got to go." The lone wolf gulped as he grabbed his bag and all but ran out of the cafe, leaving a puzzled group behind...


	4. Fiery Fever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With exams looming, Lloyd and Nya start struggling to keep their powers hidden during a stressful time at school. Will the others be able to stop them from transforming in front of the entire student body before it's too late?...

Nya groaned in pain as she fidgeted in her seat at the dining table. She and Kai had an hour before school started so she was getting some last bit of studying done before the exams started later. As she glared at the textbooks her brother Kai walked out of his room, just finishing getting dressed. he had just gotten out of the shower and his usually tall spiky brown hair flowed down, nearly touching his shoulders.

"Are you feeling confident?" He smirked.

"No!" She snapped.

"Relax, you'll walk these exams." He reassured, noticing how she flinched in pain. "Right, come on sis, what's wrong?"

"I don't know." She whined as she rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache growing. "I just can't seem to focus on anything; my head hurts, my hands are throbbing, my feet too, and right in the gums it burns." She whimpered as Kai's eyes widened in recognition.

"Right, that's it, you're not going to school today." He stated and pulled out his phone. "I'll talk to the principal and I'll say you're ill."

"What?" She asked in confusion.

"Look, you're on the brink of transforming." He explained and she gasped, feeling completely stupid; remembering how Kai was when he was reaching his first transformation not even a year ago. "How are you going to cope with a week of exams?" Her brother added.

"No way! I've worked far too hard for this!" She cried and the two glared at each other until Kai looked away in defeat, deciding to call Misako to see if she could give her something to help with the symptoms...

* * *

When the Smith siblings did arrive at the high school they immediately picked up on the nervous energy all the students were emitting as they ran into the school and down the halls. It was no secret that everyone was stressed about these exams and that was the reason Kai had wanted Nya to stay home. When he was reaching his first full moon transformation their parents wouldn't let him even leave his room, nevermind go to school during the exam week.

Unfortunately, Ray and Maya weren't here and there was no way Kai could win a fight against Nya.

As they walked to their lockers they saw Lloyd and Zane waiting for them. What shocked them, however, was the state Lloyd was in. It seemed Nya wasn't the only one on the brink of their first full moon transformation. Why Misako or even Wu let him come to school was beyond them but Lloyd must have managed to convince them otherwise. As soon as the blonde teen noticed the siblings he handed Nya a small brown medicine bottle.

"DON'T lose it." He told her with a stronger voice that none of them knew he had. "Mom'll make us some more tonight."

"What is it?" She asked.

"It's a rescue remedy, it'll keep you calm." Replied Zane and Kai flinched slightly, remembering what Zane had told him when they gave him that elixir. Nya unscrewed the top of the bottle and all four of them gagged.

"Urgh, it smells rank," Nya asked, trying not to throw up.

"Listen, it works," Zane reassured. "You both have to watch yourself for a while; just pop a few drops under your tongue when you feel stressed, OK?" He explained and they both nodded in understanding. Kai was about to open his locker to get his textbooks, only to jump when suddenly a pair of strong hands grabbed his shoulders. He turned around and found a giggling Cole behind him.

"Hey, Kai, what happened?" The raven-haired teen asked.

"What? I'm fine."

"Last night." He clarified. "You never showed up, we were supposed to study for the English paper?"

"Oh! Right, I'm sorry." The spiky-haired teen laughed. "Things just got a bit hectic, Nya and Lloyd are gonna transform this full moon." He explained and Cole gasped in surprise. "We could revise in the lunch hour if you like?"

"Thanks, Kai, you're the best." He smiled only for a look of disgust in form when he caught a whiff of that elixir. "Urgh! What IS that?"...

* * *

As soon as the morning bell rang everyone filed into their homeroom when their teacher, Miss. Koko was taking names for the register. While she was busy taking names, Jay noticed how Nya was fidgeting uncomfortably in her seat. By now they hade told Morro and Jay what was wrong and everyone agreed to keep an eye on the two teens.

He slowly leaned over to her and tried to get her to calm down, but it didn't help.

"How am I supposed to chill out when I've got a week of exams?" She hissed in a whisper. "I've got Kai on my back and my whole body feels like it's about to explode."

"Nya Smith?" Koko suddenly called out for the register.

"WHAT?!" She roared, startling everyone in the classroom; as soon as she realized what she did she blushed a bright red and looked away in shame. "Yes, miss, sorry, I'm here, miss." She muttered and Koko returned to checking the other students' attendance.

"This should be fun," Morro smirked to Zane, a little too loud.

"Keep it down please, Morro." Koko sighed as she finished the register. "Alright, as you know, this week's exams will start with maths, immediately after the dinner bell." She explained and the students suddenly broke out into a cold sweat. "Tomorrow, we will be having English after the first break and we'll be ending the week with Science."

"You worry too much, Cole." Pixel whispered when she saw how scared he was.

"Oh, do I?" He glared.

"Yes, but there's really no need, I have a plan."...

* * *

It wasn't long until the dreaded school lunch bell sounded throughout the school, sending most of the students into a frenzy. Instead of eating their lunches, many were sat in the cafeteria and the library, trying to get in some last-minute studying before the Maths test. While Jay, Pixel, and Zane were in the library, Kai was sat alone at their usual table, waiting for Cole and Lloyd and Nya were stood just outside the cafeteria doors with Morro.

The other two were trying to ignore the discomfort their bodies were feeling.

"Six more days and seven hours of this," Lloyd whined.

"I don't think I can stand it!" Nya groaned.

"Do you want to know what helps?" Morro grinned.

"We'll do anything." Nya gasped in desperation. Morro nodded and led the two other werewolves out one of the fire exits and began speed walking to the direction of the forest.

"What are we doing?" Lloyd asked.

"You know the best way to get through the pre-transformation blues? Move!" Morro exclaimed before he suddenly took off running at full speed towards the safety and privacy of the forest. Meanwhile, back in the crowded cafeteria, Kai was almost pulling his hair out as he looked hopelessly through the textbook in front of him when Cole took a seat across from him, a delicious looking burger on his tray.

"Hey! You seen Nya?" Kai asked. He had picked up Nya's scent earlier but it had quickly disappeared.

"She took off with Lloyd and Morro, last I saw." Cole shrugged as he took a big bite out of his lunch when he saw the agonized look on his friend's face. "What's the problem?"

"Nothing." He sighed in irritation as he slammed the textbook closed.

"You know, I think revision is well overrated."

"Yeah? Well, YOU don't have dyslexia." Kai growled, more so at his own frustration than at Cole. One Cole, Zane, and Nya know of his problem and despite their efforts to make him talk to a teacher about it, he had sworn them all to secrecy. Cole just smiled reassuringly at his friend.

"Maybe YOU just need to think OUTSIDE the box."...

* * *

Things in the library weren't much better either. While Jay, Pixel, and Zane tried to study in peace in a somewhat secluded area of the library, dozens of students were running around grabbing books and trying to cram all the information they need into their tired brains as the librarian made hopeless attempts to silence the rampaging students. While they had their heads buried in their books they failed to notice someone approaching them until they were standing right next to the table.

They all looked up and were shocked to see Harumi.

She was wearing a long brown leather jacket with big sunglasses and a large headscarf hiding her hair. If you were to see her from afar you wouldn't be able to tell it was Harumi. She looked like one of those undercover reporters.

"What do you want?" Jay asked with an irritated sigh, not interested in her bull shit today.

"Do you mind if I sit down?" She asked through clenched teeth as they looked at her in shock. There was no way this was happening. There was no way Harumi Jade was asking if she could sit with them.

"Actually, Harumi, we're trying to do a bit of study," Zane said, an air of suspicion in his voice

"Yeah, I know." She groaned and she inhaled deeply. "I was thinking... we could work together."...

* * *

After nearly half an hour of running blindly through the forest of Ninjago City, Lloyd, Morro, and Nya came to stop next to a tiny, calming stream. Lloyd and Nya laughed breathlessly as the adrenaline flowed through their veins, thankful for having some breathing space. Morro smirked at them as he leaned against a large oak tree, feeling very proud of himself.

"Better?"

"Better." Nya nodded vigorously.

"I know I've got a mom and uncle and stuff, which is more than you've got, but it feels great having someone else to talk to," Lloyd said, flinching when he realized what he said. "Sorry."

"I know what you mean, it's just really good having someone my age too, like, share this stuff with." Morro chuckled lightly.

"That goes for me as well." Nya smiled. She loved her brother and parents very much, but her parents were hardly around anymore and Kai was always way too overprotective. She couldn't really talk to the boys sometimes either and the only girl who liked her was Pixel, but that wasn't an option either. "I've always hated it, keeping it a secret from Pixel." She sighed.

"Everyone has secrets." Lloyd reminded her.

"Yeah, I'll bet Pixel hadn't shared everything with you," Morro suggested.

"She won't have secrets like ours." She frowned.

"Sometimes I wonder, is it possible to stay friends with people like her? I mean, how well do they really know us?" Morro asked out loud; they all stood there in tense silence until Lloyd looked at his phone and let out a gasp. "What? You're supposed to calm down." Morro frowned.

"We've got a maths exam in ten minutes!" He exclaimed and Nya started panicking too.

"Oh, yeah... I'll catch you up." Morro sighed and watched as the two of them ran back in the direction of the school, leaving him alone with his thoughts...

* * *

Harumi sighed in relief as she exited the girls' restrooms, disguise long gone. She had sworn Jay, Pixel, and Zane to secrecy about her studying with them because any other day she would soon spit in their eyes; but the thing was, she NEEDED smart people like Pixel and her some of her friends. As much as Harumi loathed to admit it, she thinks she might be good at science. To be honest, she was fed up with being labeled a total air-brain.

She had known for a long while now that she was good at science.

When she was in class and the teacher suddenly asked them questions, she knew the answers. Even before the freakshow sometimes, but she never, ever, put her hand up. She would never admit it to herself though; if her friends ever found out she was into science or other smart stuff she was certain they would drop her before she could even blink. As she walked down the hallway, Morro suddenly appeared around the corner. The two of them stared each other down until Harumi gave up and stared at the ground and sped past him.

She just wanted these exams to be over as soon as possible...

* * *

After lunch, everyone gathered in the gym for their maths exam. While everyone was happily chatting away Nya and Lloyd just couldn't still. The exam hadn't even started yet and they were already on edge. As the teachers were finishing up counting heads and confiscating their mobile phones Morro suddenly burst into the gymnasium, just in the nick of time.

"Nice of you to show your face, Morro!" Miss Koko sighed as he took his seat in the front. "Now, settle down, everyone, you have exactly one hour, starting... now; you may open your papers." She said and immediately everyone opened their exam papers and started working.

All except Nya.

She gritted her teeth tightly as she scratched her head, tapped her pencil against the deck, and flipped through the exam paper but she just couldn't focus. She took a quick glance up at her friends. Pixel was two rows ahead of her with her head down, writing on her exam paper. Zane and Jay were sat at either side of him, also concentrating on their own exams, and Kai, Lloyd, and Cole were sat near the back of the room, unable to help her.

Her breathing sped up slightly as her enhanced heard picked up the other students' heart thumping loudly.

She coughed as she smelt the sweat filling the air. She grabbed her head and hissed in pain as she was suddenly hit with a strong, painful headache, her own heartbeat picking up as well. By now the boys had noticed her racing heart and a few other students were starting to eye her strangely. Even the teachers looked up over in concern. Her breathing quickened as she looked at her hands and gasped when she saw her veins darkening.

Pretending to drop a pencil, she quickly crawled under her desk and desperately looked to Jay.

The brunette's eyes widened when he saw Nya's yellow ones and he looked around for a solution. His gaze fell on the fire alarm on the wall next to him and he made a dash for it, setting it off. The students shot up from their seats as the teachers instructed them to stay calm and to not run. Kai and the others tried to get to Nya but they were pushed out the gymnasium by the stampede of students. Ignoring everyone else, Jay rushed to Nya's side and coaxed her out from under the desk.

Her eyes and veins had thankfully returned to normal.

"Nya, it's over." He soothed as he helped her to her feet. "Keep calm and take deep breaths."

"Jay Walker!" Miss. Koko roared as she stormed over to them, a murderous look on her face. "You are in big trouble, young man!"...

* * *

After Nya had calmed down a little bit and Jay had been given an earful from the principal, the two of them were forced to join the rest of the students at the front of the school. Jay was given a month's detention and the principal said they were going to call his parents but Jay was hoping when they heard why he disrupted the exam they would go easy on him. As Jay was being chewed out by the principal, Nya had almost drunk the entire bottle of the medicine Lloyd had given her but it didn't help.

While the students had to line up outside the school, the others checked on Lloyd but thankfully he wasn't about to lose it like Nya.

Many of the students were overjoyed for the delay. But there were a few, those who really studied and prepared, who were furious at Jay for his actions. As soon as Nya and Jay arrived on the scene, Kai ran over to them and asked his sister a million questions a second. However, as soon as Pixel saw Jay and Nya she charged straight at them, with the others following close behind.

"What the hell was all that about?!" She snarled, but thankfully none of the other students heard her. "You are pathetic Jay Walker! Just because you can't do the exam and want to waste your own time doesn't mean you get to waste everyone else's!"

Suddenly the principal came walking out.

"Can I have everyone's attention?! Due to recent events, your exams will restart tomorrow morning so please return to your homerooms and use this time to get some extra studying in!" He said before walking back into the school. Pixel sent Jay one last withering glare before going into the school. Morro let out a small growl and chased after her, leaving the others to worry over Nya and Lloyd.

"Why don't you just back off?!" He snarled at her once they were on their own in a crowded hallway.

"What?" She asked with an angrily frown. "Who are YOU to talk? You've been treating everyone like dirt since the day you got here!"

"True but Nya and Lloyd are having their own problems without a stupid bitch like you screaming at them!"

"Oh? And what pray tell are these 'problems'?" She asked but when he failed to reply she simply scoffed. "Well, since you guys are such great friends, tell them they know where to find me when they feel like rejoining the human race." She spat and walked away in a rage. She walked until all of a sudden she was suddenly grabbed and pulled into an empty girls restroom.

She ripped her arm out of the grip of who grabbed her and was shocked to she Harumi standing there.

"Hey, Pixal, what are you doing after school?" The white-haired girl asked nervously.

"Now, why would you want to know THAT, Harumi?" Pixel hissed, crossing her arms in irritation. After the confrontation with Morro, she wasn't in the mood for another one.

"I thought maybe we could study together." She offered, surprising Pixel; sure they had studied together before, but Harumi had made it clear that it was a one-time thing and if they told anyone she would make their lives hell. "Is that OK?" She asked when she noticed the pale girl's hesitation. Pixel thought about for a minute before smiling.

"You know what? It IS OK."

"I thought we'd head over to the science lab?"

"Great!"...

* * *

Thanks to the fire alarm, most of the science labs were empty, making it the perfect place for Harumi and Pixel to get some studying done in private. In the science lab, Tails was sat at a desk next to Sticks with an open textbook between them. Another reason Harumi had asked the smartest girl in school for help because she knew that if she failed these exams there would be consequences. She didn't want to be in her parents' wrath again.

Especially so soon after that drama with the art exhibition; her failing grades would be the last nail in the coffin for them. Unfortunately, even though she really wanted to pass the exams and get back in her parents' good graces, she was starting to get bored. She looked around the empty classroom and her jade eyes sparkled when they spotted something interesting.

"Hey." She suddenly said, causing her study buddy to look up. "They forgot to lock up the chemicals 'cause of the fire alarm." She said and gestured to the chemical closet door, which was open just a crack.

"So?" Pixel shrugged, only to gasp when Harumi walked over to the closet and pulled out some bottles of chemicals.

"C'mon, let's do some real science." She smiled as she put the chemicals on the table and grabbed some beakers from the shelves.

"Do you have any idea what'll happen if we get caught?" Pixel glared, scared someone could walk in at any second.

"Relax, will you?" Harumi smiled, but Pixel didn't she sighed. "I'll do it, then." She said and started pouring different chemicals into the beakers with expert skill, careful not to put too much in and cause an accident. The surprised Pixel, she was certain the place would be in flames by now but as she watched the lead cheerleader work she realized Harumi seemed to have an instinctual knowledge of chemistry.

Deciding to lower her defenses for a second, Pixel slowly moved closer to assist her ner lab partner when Nya suddenly walked into the room.

She had been looking for her only female friend since she had angrily left them at the front of the school. Morro had told them what he had said to her and after a verbal beating from the guys she had gone off to make sure Pixel was alright and was very surprised to find her doing some secret chemistry with the notorious Harumi Jade.

Both of them had noticed Nya enter but chose to ignore her.

"Pix? I was... wondering if you wanted to get some hot cocoa at Ying Yang's after you're done?" She offered but flinched when they let out a high pitched squeal of delight as the chemicals in the beaker reacted and overflowed, spilling all over the worktop and over the floor. "Or you could just... do science with Harumi?" She sighed sadly as she was ignored, feeling slightly hurt.

"Can we do that again, but with like an accelerant?" Harumi asked, genuinely excited.

"We shouldn't even be doing this, we need to be very careful." Pixel warned with a soft smile on her face.

"What's wrong with everyone today!?" Nya suddenly cried.

"What?" Pixel asked in disbelief. "You're the one out of whack, Nya! You and Jay!"

"Ignore her." Harumi huffed, believing Nya was just jealous that Pixel was talking to someone outside their group.

"Look, I don't know what you think your new 'friend' is after, but once she's got it, she won't want to know you anymore," Nya stated coldly

"Yeah, I am aware of that, thanks." Pixel snapped back, shocking Harumi, who was putting a type pf accelerant in the smokey beaker. "You and the others have been nothing but rude and dismissive to me and anyone dumb enough to care about you for weeks!"

"You've got no idea what the fuck your talking about! I'm out of here!" Nya snarled as she stormed out the classroom before she did something they all would regret.

"See ya." Harumi spat as she grabbed her bag and pushed past the science nerd to leave as well. She was incredibly hurt; she had really been trying to build bridges with Pixel again, even if she planned on keeping it a secret from the rest of the school and her friends.

"Aren't you going to help clear up?" Pixel called after her but she and Nya were already gone and no one seemed to notice the chemical contents of the beaker start to bubble. Sighing in frustration, Pixel grabbed a paper towel and began cleaning up the mess she and Harumi had made. As she was doing this, Nya returned with a guilty expression on her face as Pixel glared at her.

"Hey, Pix, I don't want to leave it like this-"

Suddenly the beaker Pixel and Harumi had been using released an explosion and they both cried out in shock and pain as Nya was blasted to the door and Pixel to the back of the class. The pale girl hit her head on a table and fell to the floor unconscious. Nya immediately sat up and gasped as Kai and Jay burst into the room. They had been looking for Nya when they heard the explosion. For the second time that day, the fire alarm went off as a real, large fire was quickly spreading through the classroom.

That was a big problem for them, especially due to their werewolf genes.

Fire naturally frightened all animals, including humans, so werewolves would often uncontrollably change out of stress or anxiety when encountered with fire. As the fire spread, the three teens began to panic as their eyes turned yellow and their veins revealed themselves. Their inner wolves were attempting to take control and flee the scene. Thankfully, however, the desire to protect their human friend and each other overpowered their primal fear.

"We have to help her!" Nya howled as smoke began to fill the room and flow out into the hallway.

"Jay go and get help! Hurry!" Kai shouted. Jay nodded and ran to get help while Kai and Nya inched closer to the flames, trying to see if there was a way to get to Pixel through all the smoke. Nya quickly pointed out a small area untouched by the fire where they could walk through and get to their friend. As they tried to control their instincts and avoid the fire, neither of them noticed Pixel slowly regaining consciousness. She slightly opened her eyes and looked at the Smith siblings.

She gasped weakly when she saw their yellow eyes glowing through the thick smoke.

As they got closer she saw their veins and could hear the low animalistic growls they were trying to suppress, but she lost consciousness again due to the smoke filling her lungs. When Jay finally returned with a terrified Miss. Koko and a foam fire extinguisher they saw Kai and Nya carefully carrying Pixel out with Kai's arms under her shoulders and Nya lifting her legs. Once they were clear Koko used the fire extinguisher to put out the fire as the siblings carefully placed the unconscious girl on the floor.

She was covered in ash but thankfully was still breathing.

Now they were both away from the fire the two of them slightly relaxed and their eyes and veins returned to normal before Koko noticed anything. As soon as the fire was out Koko looked them over and saw that other than some smoke inhalation they were OK. The fire alarm finally stopped and soon after Pixel let out a few coughs as she woke up. Slowly, her bright green eyes opened and she looked around in a daze until she saw Kai and Nya sat on the floor a few feet away from her.

Remembering what happened in the fire, she let out a startled gasp as she backed up against the wall and stared at the two confused teens as if they were demons straight out of hell.

"Pixel... are you all right?" Jay asked when he saw the fearful looks she was giving Kai and Nya.

"I saw... I thought I... I thought..." She whispered as she tried to gasp for breath. Seeing she was having a panic attack, Koko rushed to her side before any more could be said or done.

"It's over, you're safe now, Pixel." She reassured and urged Pixel to look at her. "You're safe."...

* * *

The next day at school, the fire was all that the students could think of instead of their exams. Word had spread fast and Jay, Kai, and Nya were seen as heroes throughout the entire student body. They had all been rushed to the hospital after the fire and thankfully their lungs weren't permanently damaged due to the smoke they had inhaled. Pixel and Harumi were both given detention for causing the fire and their parents were forced to pay for the damages.

Unfortunately, saving someone from a burning classroom didn't allow them to skip the exams.

Nya sighed as she and Lloyd grabbed some of that elixir Misako had made them. If she was being honest, Nya didn't feel so stressed anymore and felt maybe her symptoms had passed, but it was better to be safe than sorry, something Lloyd agreed with as he took a tiny sip.

"What's THAT? Smells disgusting." Dareth gagged, having caught a whiff of it as he was walking past.

"Something to get us through the day." Replied Nya, not really paying him any mind.

"Not a werewolf potion, then?" He joked, not seeing how they both froze.

"Sorry, what?" Lloyd asked with a nervous smile.

"It just Pixel's new theory; apparently, Kai and Nya are werewolves." He laughed and let out a wolf howl as Lloyd and Nya's stomachs dropped and the color drained from their faces.

"W-Why would she think that?" Nya gulped, starting to feel faint.

"She's going around telling people how she saw you two 'turn' in the fire." Dareth shrugged when the bell suddenly rang. He said goodbye to them and ran off into the crowd. As soon as they were alone Lloyd and Nya shared a look before they took out their bottles and gulped almost half of it down...


	5. Full Moon Blues Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nya, Lloyd, and Jay are trapped with their schoolmates on Dorcha Island, on the night of Nya and Lloyd's first full moon transformations. With Pixel on the hunt for werewolves and the rest of their pack stuck in Ninjago, will they be able to stay hidden, or is the world's biggest secret about to be exposed?...

Jay sighed as he and his friends sat near the back of the school bus as it drove off the ferry it had just been parked on. All the students were buzzing with excitement, the school was going on a history field trip to Dorcha Island. The island was relatively tiny compared to Ninjago city and it's been the home to many urban legends and ghost stories.

The small village on the island looked luxuriant.

With its mahogany wood rooftops, limestone walls, and rows upon rows of luscious trees, Dorcha had a charming atmosphere. The main attraction was the old tavern, which was built around 380 years ago and was allegedly designed by witches. The villagers had an improving economy, which was mainly supported by herbalism, beer brewing, and crafting.

Unfortunately, the day they had come on this trip just so happened to coincide with Lloyd and Nya's first full moon transformation.

Although they were all guaranteed to be back home on the mainland long before it was time for the moon to rise. While the other students were talking and laughing at unbelievably high volume, Jay looked at Lloyd and Nya rolled his eyes at their giddy expressions. Both of them were very hyperactive from the excess energy given off by the impending full moon.

Not that Jay could blame them, he was also feeling a burst of energy and was sure the others would feel the same.

Sadly, only he, Lloyd, Pixel, and Nya were allowed to go on this field trip. Kai, Cole, and Morro didn't have the grades or records needed and Zane's father didn't want to risk it if they got stranded on the island during a full moon. Of course, he couldn't tell the teachers that so Dr. Julien just said Zane was terribly sick with the flu and couldn't attend the field trip.

Not that Zane was in the mood for anything lately.

After Nya and Lloyd had told the others that Pixel believed that she and her brother were werewolves they all agreed to stay away from her. At least until they could figure out a way to change her mind, which knowing Pixel as long as they had, they knew was going to be a challenge. They didn't want her to know they knew she had figured out their secret so they played dumb when they were with her.

Jay was suddenly dragged out of his thoughts by a loud yawn and laughed when he saw the tired expression on Nya's face.

He smiled lovingly at her. Ever since they were kids he'd had a crush on her but had never had enough courage to ask her out. That was all going to change today though. After speaking to Cole about this, the raven-haired boy had suggested that he ask her on the field trip. He told the smaller boy to get her alone, possibly on the beach, and ask her there.

"I couldn't sleep the night before my first transformation either," Jay said with a smile, trying to ignore the butterflies in his stomach.

"I feel like I'm about to explode." Nya gasped in both excitement and a little hint of fear.

"There's nothing to be scared of." He reassured her.

"Yeah, you'll be with me and my family." Lloyd reminded them. At first, Nya had planned to spend her first transformation with her brother and the boys at Dr. Julien's forest home, but as her first transformation loomed closer, she realized that while that would be fun she wasn't looking forward to the aftermath when the returned to human form, naked. She just didn't feel comfortable and they respected that. When she heard of this, Misako had offered Nya the chance to spend it with her family at their house, which the teenage girl happily accepted.

It was a much more small and private space and she wouldn't be the only female there.

Jay had wanted her to spend it alone with him at his parents' junkyard but knew that Kai would tear him to shreds if he found out. The only reason Nya's brother was even letting her spend it at Lloyd's was that Lloyd's uncle and mother would be there. As the three werewolves talked quietly among themselves, none of them saw Pixel looking back at them. Instead of sitting with them like she usually did, she was sat at the front of the bus.

She was intentionally keeping her distance from Kai and Nya Smith.

She just didn't know who her so-called 'friends' were anymore. When Pixel had told Zane what she had seen he simply shrugged her off, say she had hit her head and she was also breathing in all those fumes. But she KNEW what she saw and she was going to prove it. Soon the bus pulled up outside the docks and the students and teachers started stepping out and lining up. As the teachers were hacking to make sure everyone and their bags were off the bus a tour guide appeared and started showing them the sights and explaining the island's history.

While the rest of the students were paying attention to the tour guide, however, Lloyd and Nya were too busy messing around and laughing to really pay attention to the tour.

"Nya, Lloyd! Come on, how old are you?" Miss. Koko glared and they muttered an apology.

"What's up with you guys?" Pixel asked, giving Nya a nervous glance.

"Nothing, we're just excited." Lloyd smiled as Nya tried to hold in her laughter.

"You know, my Father's just made a breakthrough with his new smartwatch, you have to come over and help me test it tonight when we get back." She suggested.

"Sorry, Pix, I'm going around to Lloyd's tonight; his mom makes the best meatloaf." Nya smiled.

"Oh, yeah? What about Kai?"

"He's going to Cole tonight, I think they're having a guy night," Jay replied when the teachers started demanding their attention as they moved on to marvel at the other areas of the island, either ignoring or not noticing the look of confusion and frustration on Pixel's face...

* * *

After an hour of touring around the island, the teachers separated the students into groups as they handed out papers for a history scavenger hunt around the entire small island.

"OK students, the questions you have been given cover the castle, the church, and the tavern," Koko explained after she had handed all the papers out. "So for those of you who have been paying attention to the tour, this should be very easy and there is a prize for the most correct answers, and remember, be back at the bus by five pm without fail, or we WILL miss the tide." She warned and with that the students broke off into their groups and wandered into the village.

Nya was relieved when she, Jay, and Lloyd were placed in the same group.

But unfortunately, they were put in the same group as Pixel and Chad.

"Right, we just need to answer three questions in the village, two in the church, four in the tavern, and two on the beach." Jay listed off.

"OK, then you two take the church and the village and we'll do the rest," Chad suggested to Jay and Nya.

"We're a team." Lloyd reminded them. "We're not supposed-"

"Koko doesn't care how we get the answers, as long we do," Chad smirked. "So, we'll meet you both at the tavern later?" He asked as they all reluctantly nodded and went their separate ways. The only reason Jay agreed to split up was that he wanted to spend some alone time with Nya and the only reason Nya agreed to do it was that she wanted to get away from Pixel's prying eyes, even if it was only for an hour before they regrouped.

As she and Jay walked along the stone beach, she couldn't help but admire the scenery.

This would be a brilliant place to spend the full moon. Running on the beaches, playing in the ruins, it would be amazing. Unfortunately, Lloyd's family were expecting them at home, to share their cozy little den. When she was more comfortable with the aftermath of transforming she would join Kai at Zane's home where they were free to run around the secluded part of the forest.

This was also Lloyd's first transformation and she knew he wanted to be with his family.

Her parents had wanted to be here with their children during her first transformation but sadly their flight had been delayed. The same thing had happened when Kai reached his first transformation and when they did finally return home they had to face an even more hotheaded teenager. As they walked along the beach, Jay noticed some old, abandoned buildings sitting on the edge of the beach.

Suddenly getting an idea, Jay smirked and ran over to one of the buildings with Nya watching him.

The plan was for him to impress her with some impressive gymnastic skills while they were alone before he managed to work up the nerve to ask her out. Nya watched in worry as he dumped his backpack and climbed onto the room of the nearest building. They both laughed as Jay flipped and cartwheeled across the wet, rickety rooftop with expert grace.

To a stranger, it would seem as if Jay had had years of training.

All of a sudden, Jay's foot landed on an unstable tile and it slid off the roof, taking Jay down with it. The boy let out a pained cry as Nya rushed to his side, fearing the worst. When she reached his side she was relieved to see that he was mostly unscathed, but was clutching his foot in pain. Immediately, Nya pulled out her cell phone and made a call...

* * *

Pixel growled in annoyance as she was forced to follow Lloyd and Chad around the small village to the tavern when what she really wanted was to be studying Nya Smith in closer detail, especially with the full moon tonight. As she thought about it more and more she found it a bit too convenient that she was staying at Lloyd's place and Kai with Cole.

They both must have known the truth about the Smith siblings.

Just then she was struck with a sad and irritating thought. If those two knew the truth about Kai and Nya being werewolves it could mean Zane and Jay might know and possibly Morro too. At first, she didn't want to believe it, it sounded too crazy, but one of the first things her father had told her was that the simplest explanation is sometimes the right one, even if it sounds crazy.

Kai and Nya had been friends with the others for years, most of their lives in fact.

It wasn't completely impossible for them to trust the others with their secret and she didn't have a better theory as to why Nya said she would be at Lloyd's during a full moon. The bottom line was she knew what she saw in the lab during the fire. From now on, she planned to stick to them like glue. On the bus, at school, after school. Everywhere they go, she would be there.

Either she'll find evidence, or they'll get so fed up with her they'd have to start talking.

As the three teens waited for their fellow teammates, however, they soon realized it was starting to get late and if they didn't hurry up they would miss the ferry but to the mainland. As the minutes dragged on, they had no choice but to go looking for them. As the group made their way towards the beach, however, they were shocked to see Jay laying on the floor with Miss. Koko and Nya by his side.

"What the hell happened?!" Lloyd cried as they ran over to them.

"Jay's hurt! He fell off a roof!" Nya exclaimed.

"We need to hurry," Chad said, gesturing to the time on his watch. The last thing he wanted was to be stranded on an island with half the dork squad.

"We're all going to get home tonight, don't worry," Koko reassured as she finished examining Jay's injured ankle. "OK, it doesn't appear to be broken." She said before she slung the freckled teen's right arm over her shoulder. "Chad, take his other arm."

"But... the ferry!"

"It's all right, I told you all to be back on the bus 15 minutes early." She inspirited. "If we hurry up, we can still make it."...

* * *

Regrettably, it took them around ten minutes to carry Jay back to the bus where everyone was waiting. As soon as they put Jay down and everyone had taken their seats the bus drove as fast as it could back to the docks where the ferry was supposed to be waiting for them. Alas, by the time the class arrived at the docks the ferry had already set sail. As the students descended into a panic, Koko was talking to the principal to explain the situation.

After she was finished talking on the phone, Koko braced herself and stood up to address the students.

"Everyone, I'm afraid there's no way out tonight." She said and the bus of teenagers started shouting and panicking.

"Quiet! Quiet, please!" Miss. Jinro pleaded and thankfully most of the students went silent.

"Now then, I have spoken to the principal, and we've decided that we are going to stay here overnight and go back first thing in the morning; luckily, the inn can squeeze us all in yay!" She smiled weakly. "But it's going to have to be three or four to a room, so gather your things, please and we'll allocate you a room when we arrive at the inn." She explained and the students begrudgingly accepted there situation.

Everyone but Jay, Nya, and Lloyd.

While the teachers and students were distracted, the three werewolves contacted their friends via their online group chat.

 **AQUA DRAGON-** _**Jay can't walk, we're stuck on an island, and my friend thinks I'm a monster!**_

**THE BOULDER- _Don't panic._**

**FROSTY TECHY- _Jay will be fine once he transforms. The full moon heals almost anything in a werewolf, but you'll both have to have to be out of the village by 8:30._**

**GREEN BEAN- _I wish we'd never come here, my mom's gonna kill me._**

**FABULOUS THUNDER- _I'd give anything to be back at home._**

**FIRE KING- _Maybe we could get 2 u by boat?_**

**AQUA DRAGON-** _**How would you explain that to the teachers?** _

**FROSTY TECHY-** _**We wouldn't make it in time anyway, not unless we can paddle a boat with our paws, that is.** _

**FIRE KING-** _**Ur going 2 have 2 think ur way out of this. Ur on ur own now, sis.** _

**THE BOULDER-** _**Whatever you do, just make sure you get out of the village in time...** _

* * *

After speaking the parents the school bus parked outside the inn and the students began making their way inside. It wasn't exactly the most luxurious place, but if you have a choice, it was quite cozy. While most of the students were furious with Jay, probably even more than when he set the fire alarm off, Pixel was over the moon. Now Nya was stranded on the island with her and a full moon was tonight.

She couldn't have planned this better herself.

This was the most perfect opportunity for her to prove if whether one or both of the Smith siblings were indeed werewolves. Operation: Stick Like Glue was now in full effect. Soon the teachers assigned the students to their temporary rooms and Lloyd helped a limping Jay up the creaking stairs. Within a few minutes, only Koko, Nya and Pixel were the only ones left in the lobby.

"Can I, er, give you a hand with that?" Pixel offered as Nya grabbed her bags.

"Cool!" She smiled and handed Pixel her bags. "So I'll go in there?" Nya asked Koko, gesturing towards the room Pixel was staying in.

"Sorry Nya, you'll have to go in with Maggie Young, Erin Grant, and Nina Noel," Koko replied, and Nya cringed at the thought of sharing a room with Harumi's top cheerleaders, even if it was for a couple of hours, but it did help her; the last thing she wanted was to be stuck in a room with Pixel right now. Shooting the pale girl an apologetic smile, Nya took her bags and went upstairs.

"Oh, look, it's Jay's girlfriend!" Maggie sneered as soon as Nya entered the room.

"I'm not his girlf-"

"He fell because he was showing off to you!" Erin glared.

"So it's your fault we're stranded in with no PJs and no clean underwear!" Nina gagged as she sprayed her strong perfume around the room, mostly at Nya in disgust, causing the dark-haired teen to sneeze. She quickly dumped her bag in the room and rushed out before Nina's perfume suffocated her. With nothing better to do, she went down to the inn's 'game room' where she found most of the students there as well.

There wasn't much to the game room.

All there was were three pool tables and an empty snack bar. Nya looked around and swiftly joined Jay and Lloyd in a far corner of the room.

"How will you get out without people missing you?" Jay asked. He and Lloyd were sharing with Chad but it wouldn't be too hard to get away from the jock, injured ankle, or not.

"Pixel thinks I'm with the cheerleaders and I'll tell the cheerleaders I've moved into Pixel's room." She explained.

"We need to get out of the village by 8:30." Lloyd reminded them. "We'll leave separately and meet at the beach."

"OK." Nya gulped, her nerves about her first full moon transformation starting to show. Seeing this, Jay gently grabbed her hand to comfort her.

"It'll be all right, Nya, I'll look after you."...

* * *

Later that evening, just an hour and a half before they had to get out of the village, Nya ran up to the room she was sharing with the cheerleaders and found the three divas applying makeup, attempting to distract themselves from the lack of skincare and beauty products at their disposal. She grabbed her bag and attempted to sneak out, but it was a fruitless attempt.

"Where are you going?" Maggie spat venomously.

"I'm... moving to Pixel's room."

"Good riddance, don't want you geeking up our room, anyway." Erin huffed arrogantly. Nya simply rolled her eyes as she stepped outside into the hallway, only for her hearing to suddenly amplify. She could hear someone approaching their room and she was running out of time. Without hesitating, the dark-haired teen bolted down the stairs and out into the evening with blazing speed.

Not even five seconds later, Pixel stepped out and knocked at the door of Nya and the cheerleaders' room.

When no one replied, she stepped inside and only saw the cheerleaders.

"Oh, no... a geek convention." Nina groaned. when they saw her.

"Where's Nya?"

"She's moved into your room, dumbass!" Maggie jeered before she pushed the smart girl out of their bedroom and slammed the door in her face. Ignoring the divas' rudeness, Pixel dashed around the inn looking for her friend. She knew for a fact that Nya hadn't moved into her room. She searched the entire inn and discovered that not only had Nya disappeared, but so had Jay and Lloyd.

Eyes narrowing, she ran out of the inn and out into the village.

She was going to find them, and she was going to get some answers...

* * *

After meeting up with Jay and Lloyd at the deserted beach, the three of them quickly double-checked to make sure they weren't being followed before they went to find the best spot to watch the full moon as they transformed. They soon found a quiet, breezy spot near a grassy cliff overlooking the water and beach. They all stood side by side as Lloyd's watch beeped, signaling that it was time.

Nervously, Lloyd and Nya looked up at the shining full moon as their hair flowed in the cold night wind.

They looked to Jay, who gave them reassuring smiles as all three of them began to change under the moonlight. Their eyes all turned yellow and the veins in their hands and necks darkened, revealing themselves in the pale moonlight. Seeing Nya's hands shaking in fear, Jay gently took hold of hers and gave it a comforting squeeze as the two of them blushed.

Lloyd just smiled at them.

Suddenly, he and Nya gasped as they felt a strange freezing shiver ripple throughout their whole bodies. Before the realized what was happening, they felt their bodies start to shrink as their cells rearranged themselves. It was over in a matter of seconds and when they regained their senses they noticed instead of the breaths from a human, they were heavy, canine pants.

Looking down they two of them felt joy like they had never felt before.

Instead of a pair of feet, they saw furry wolf paws. Lloyd and Nya both looked at themselves and at each other overjoyed to see they had transformed into their wolf forms for the first time. Lloyd had blonde fur like Zane's except his fur was slightly darker. Nya's fur was completely pitch black like Cole's. Their clothes lay crumpled up on the ground under their paws.

They both immediately looked at Jay and saw him smiling down at them, still in human form.

Slowly, he knelt down onto his hands and knees and allowed himself to turn as well. Once they had all transformed, the three wolves circled each other, getting used to their unique scents until they couldn't contain their excitement anymore and howled to the moon glowing above them. The sound echoed across the island before all three of them set off running along the hills and shore.

Down in the empty village streets, Pixel was still looking for Nya when she jumped at the howls shattering the silent night.

She looked up into the inky night sky at the full moon. Nya must have changed. She heard more howls coming from the beach so she ran towards it. She stepped onto the deserted grey beach and listened for any more howls. Seconds later there were some more howls and Pixel shined her flashlight in their direction. The howls were surely coming from the abandoned lime kilns at the other side of the beach.

With a determined look in her eyes, Pixel ran toward the lime kilns.

She was so close now. Meanwhile, up by the lime kilns, Jay, Lloyd, and Nya were playing together. They had found a large, dried branch on the beach and switched between playing tug of war with it to playing keep-away; all the while howling at the moon without a care in the world. That is until they heard the sound of footsteps on the stone beach, heading their way along with the shine of a flashlight.

Letting out small growls, Jay and Lloyd ran off in direction of the grassy hills while Nya ran into the darkness of the lime kilns.

Pixel soon arrived on the scene but she didn't see any beasts or hear anymore howling. Not ready to give up, however, she began searching for clues as to where Nya could have gone. Looking around at the damp dirt, she smirked when she saw large pawprints, leading into the lime kilns. Knowing there was no turning back now, Pixel took a deep breath to calm her nerves before walking into the darkness.

It was cold, dark, and wet but that did nothing to deter the scientist as a distant clatter echoed throughout the tunnel.

Seeing Pixel closing in on her, Nya tried to run further into the tunnel only to find it was dead-end. The black she-wolf, hidden by the shadows, turned around as dread filled her stomach, she was certain this was the end. As Pixel slowly crept towards the end of the tunnel, she was so focused on what was in front of her that she failed to notice the sound of scampering feet until something suddenly crashed into her and knocked her over.

It was Jay and Lloyd.

As soon as they had noticed that Nya was not with them, Jay had darted back to save her, with Lloyd following close behind. Seeing that Pixel was momentarily distracted, all three wolves bolted out of the lime kilns and into the cold, misty night. Not even half a second later, Pixel managed to gather her senses and quickly shined her flashlight around, screaming in frustration when she saw that she was all alone in the damp tunnel...

* * *

As soon as the sun rose the next morning, Pixel marched over to Jay and Lloyd's room and banged loudly on the door. A few seconds later, a disheveled looking Jay opened the door and eyed Pixel nervously. She looked passed his shoulder and saw Lloyd was also awake and looking at her awkwardly. They could all hear Chad snoring loudly from under his covers.

"Where were you two last night?" She demanded bitterly.

"What?" Jay asked, trying to act dumb.

"Nay was out all night and you went with her." She stated. "I followed the sound of the howling to the lime kiln, and there was something there; I think Nya changed last night and you two know about it."

"What are you talking about?" Lloyd asked, trying to throw her off the scent,

"Something knocked me over, and it wasn't human."

"Well, it could've have been a dog or a fox." Jay shrugged.

"Then where was Nya all night?

"Well, I've got an idea, let's ask her," Lloyd suggested.

"Fine!" Pixel glared and they all ran upstairs knocking loudly on the door to the room Nya was supposed to be sharing with the cheerleaders.

"Piss off!" One of them groaned from inside

"We're coming in!" Pixel shouted and without wasting another second, slammed the bedroom door open and immediately saw the bed Nya was supposed to be sleeping in was empty. "Where's Nya?"

"Don't ask us!" Maggie whined.

"Haven't seen her all night!" Erin added, still buried under the covers.

"Get the fuck out!" Nina screeched and the three friends quickly scurried out into the hallway just as Nya was walking up the stairs with her arms full of bedsheets and pillows.

"Oh... there you are." Pixel said, caught slightly off guard.

"You didn't think I was going to share with them, did you?" She smirked and gestured to the sheets in her arms. "I sneaked downstairs and spent the night on the sofa."

"Where did you go with Jay and Lloyd last night?"

"Lloyd and I took Jay on a walk, his leg was hurting." She quickly said. Thankfully the full moon had worked it's magic and Jay's ankle was completely healed.

"I can smell bacon." Lloyd suddenly said, practically drooling at the smell of breakfast.

"Great! I could eat a whole pig!" Jay exclaimed as he and Lloyd ran down the stairs in hunger.

"Are you coming?" Nya smiled and Pixel reluctantly followed her down, accepting defeat for now...

* * *

After everyone had had some breakfast and a shower they were on their way home. Within no time at all, the school bus was pulling up outside the school where many of the students' parents were waiting to collect their children. As students met up with their parents and guardians Pixel silently watched from a distance as Jay, Lloyd and Nya whispered and joked about something she couldn't make out.

She knew Nya was lying, she had to be.

There was no way those three had been out all night just to take a walk. Pixel knew there was something out there and she was confident it wasn't a stray dog. She might have been wrong but until she knew for certain, there was no way Pixel Borg was going to give up. As Jay and Nya laughed and talked about last night and other things Lloyd's mind drifted to his own transformation and how it had felt to finally change.

It was absolutely amazing.

He now understood what the others were talking about when they told him about the pull of the moon and how it felt to run free with their wolf selves. Lloyd didn't know what the future held, especially with Pixel sniffing around, but there was one thing he did know. Being a werewolf was going to be so great...


	6. Full Moon Blues Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morro learns more about wolf packs and begins to wonder where he fits in in Lloyd's...

Cole sighed in boredom as he stared at the clock above the classroom door, waiting for the day to finish. He looked to the others and saw they had similar expressions on their faces. Only he, Kai, Harumi, and Morro was sat in the classroom. Lloyd, Jay, Pixel, Nya, and the rest of their history class had gone on a field trip to the Dorcha Island. Kai, Cole, Harumi, and Morro didn't have the grades needed and Zane's father didn't want to risk it if they got stranded on the island during a full moon.

Of course, he couldn't tell the teachers that so Dr. Julien just said Zane was terribly sick with the flu and couldn't attend the field trip.

As they were listening to a substitute teacher droned on and on about some kind of subject none of them cared about, Morro was thinking about the full moon tonight when his hearing suddenly distorted. He couldn't help but flinch at the thought of Lloyd and Nya spending his first full moon transformation locked up in the Garmadon family's basement. He knew that it was a place of safety. A sacred place to their family, that it had protected their family for generations.

No-one could harm them there when they locked themselves inside.

But he couldn't help feeling like they were only trapping themselves. Morro quietly panted and coughed at the thought of spending a full moon locked in that tiny room. A night in the basement didn't look too good. It was going to be horrible for Lloyd and Nya. Morro didn't know how Lloyd's mother and uncle could do it every month. Breaking out into a cold sweat, Morro quickly pushed those thoughts to the far corners of his mind and tried to get through the rest of the day...

* * *

"You ok?" Cole asked as they drove up the isolated forest road to Zane's house in his black SUV. It hadn't gone unnoticed when Morro started getting agitated in class, but he and Kai had just shrugged it off as full moon blues. That is until they had been informed that the field trip to Dorcha Island had been stranded there and all the students would have to spend the night. While the others had been panicking, trying to find a way to get Jay, Lloyd and Nya off the island, Cole had noticed that Morro looked relieved at the news.

Morro looked to the larger teen and Kai and thought about telling them what was on his mind until he realized that they would probably criticize him.

He did understand why they locked themselves away during a full moon. But Morro couldn't hold in that instinct to be free. He knew they were more than just instincts, but he strongly felt that it was wrong to lock themselves upon the full moon. They shouldn't be afraid of who they were. He knew that and he very sure that the others felt the same way, that's why they transformed on Dr. Julien's private property.

"Nothing, just nervous." He muttered, refusing to meet their eyes.

Cole and Kai shared an unsure look, not really believing the lone wolf but decided not to push it. It had taken a lot of convincing to get Morro to agree to spend the full moon at Dr. Julien's home and they didn't want to jeopardize it. The rest of the drive was silent until Cole pulled up in front of a tall iron gate. Rolling down his window, Cole buzzed on the intercom, and about three seconds later, the heavy gates screeched open and they entered.

Looking through the window, Morro's eyes widened when he saw Zane's house.

He knew that Dr. Julien was a successful scientist and had a good job at Borg Industries, but this wasn't what he expected. From the outside, the small manor looked very elegant. It had been built with strong brown bricks and had red pine wooden decorations. Large, triangular windows brighten up the house and had been added to the house in a fairly symmetrical pattern. The roof was low and rounded and was covered with black roof tiles.

Two large chimneys sat at the side of the house.

Many smaller windows let in plenty of light to the rooms below the roof. The house itself was surrounded by a thick stone wall that measured around 16ft. It separated the dark forest from a gorgeous garden. The garden included some hanging grapevines, a pagoda, a pond, and many different flowers. As Cole parked his SUV in front of the small manor, Zane ran out and helped Kai grab their overnight bags. They followed the light-haired boy into his home and Morro's eyes widened when he got a look at the interior.

Inside, the stylish house was equipped with a huge kitchen and five cozy bedrooms, each with joining bathrooms.

It also had a warm living room, a cozy dining area, and a lounge area with a giant TV screen with a game console.

"Ah Morro, it's a pleasure to see you again." Dr. Julien smiled as he seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

"Um.. hi," Morro muttered, not meeting the elderly man's eye.

"Kai, why don't you and Cole take the bags upstairs while Zane helps me prepare the meat."

"Meat?" Morro asked, realizing that he hadn't had anything since breakfast this morning, his nerves keeping him from snacking.

"Yes, we do get hungry when we're in wolf form so we have some meat and water downstairs." He explained and picked up on the nervous energy Morro was emitting. "Why don't you go and have a look at the den, get yourself comfortable."

"T-Thanks," Morro said and quickly speed-walked towards the basement. It was nearly five times as big as the Garmadons basement. It was full of furniture that had been chewed on and big puffy cushions. There were six large silver bowls in on the corner of the room, three were filled with water and the rest were empty, meant for food. Old dog chew toys were scattered around the room, ready to be played with. There was a small hatch at the opposite end of the room that led out to a small tunnel into the forest.

The hatch in the forest was always looked except during a full moon.

Morro took a quick sniff and immediately felt even more uneasy. He could clearly smell the others and Dr. Julien strongly, but he was also picking up the smell of another werewolf, several in fact. Werewolves he hadn't met before and for some reason that he couldn't understand. It made him incredibly unsettled and for some reason, angry. These new scents, however, were faint and old, meaning that whoever these werewolves were, they hadn't been down here in years.

Thinking it was just the approach full moon that was making him nervous, Morro slumped on one of the armchairs and tried his best to relax.

He then noticed some books on the shelves above his head. Seeing that he had nothing better to do, the lone wolf sighed and grabbed one of the books. In this book, it talked about why wolves howl, how they developed this skill, and how they communicate with each other in more mysterious ways. This piqued Morro's interest. For a while he had been curious about real wolves and how many qualities werewolves shared with them.

Quickly looking around to make sure no one was watching, he read further into the book.

The book said one of the things wolves are known for is howling. This conjured up the classic image of a wolf howling at the moon in Morro's mind. But howling wasn't a wolf's only way of communicating with each other. They can also use their own body language, snarls, and barks. Wolves can hear other wolves' howls from miles away. This type of long-distance communication was amazing. Like any other kind of skill, however, this takes time to develop.

For the first two weeks of their lives, wolf pups are actually completely deaf.

Morro smiled at the pictures of cute little wolf pups on the book. But they still make lots of noise so their mother knows where they are at all times and can avoid hurting or squashing them by accident. As they get older, they squeal, scream, and yelp, before they learn to make more grown-up sounds like whines and barks. They start to join in with the daily howl from as early as three weeks old. But it was after six months that they really start to find their voice and sound just like an adult wolf.

A wolf's howl can travel up to six miles through thick forest and up to ten miles over open terrain.

High-frequency sounds bounced off objects easily or get absorbed by trees and rocks. But sounds with a low frequency, like a wolf howl, can make it through. For the best howls, wolves positioned themselves on high, open ground, and throw the sound upwards so that it carried over the mountains and valleys and to really turn up the volume, wolves would howl together. There was a reason they needed this amazing communication tool.

It all comes down to a wolf pack's lifeline; their territory.

Having their own patch of land allowed them to protect their family, guard fresh kills, and have the best access to potential prey. The size of their territory can be vast, extending for hundreds of square miles over changing terrain, so they needed their impressive howl to reach as far as possible to cover these areas. Each pack created a different sound and the meaning of the message would depend on whether they know them or not.

To a packmate who's lost, the howl could be signal, saying where they were.

To rival packs, a howl is a warning. Howling together makes a pack sound bigger and more formidable against enemies. It's often a pretty successful way for them to defend their territory because it warns off rivals from a distance. However, if another pack replies, then it means they're prepared to hold their ground and remain where they are, causing a standoff. In order to avoid conflict, one pack will eventually fall silent and retreat from the area.

Morro sighed as he thought back to when he first met the others and how defensive they got.

They were just protecting their territory. He turned the page and saw a chapter talking about the wolf pack, the tightknit family unit where most wolves spend their lives. It was key to their survival. Morro's mind wandered to the others. They were all werewolves, but they all came from very different backgrounds. Lloyd lived in a family home with his mother and uncle. Zane lived alone with his elderly werewolf father. Kai and Nya lived with their parents but they might as well have lived alone.

Cole lived alone with his human father.

Jay was adopted by a human couple and Morro lived in foster care, with no parents around. Morro was a lone wolf, but even though he'd never admit it, he wanted to be part of a pack. Somewhere he could be amongst other werewolves, somewhere he felt safe, where he belonged. While reading this book he now knew it was not difficult to understand why he might have felt like that. Because he was a werewolf Morro shared many of the same attributes as a wolf and most wolves spend their entire lives belonging to a group, a pack.

The pack leaders are the alphas.

These animals are dominant over all the other wolves in the pack. The beta wolves come next. Beta wolves act as the second in command, taking over if the alpha male dies. When an alpha grows weak or too old to effectively lead the pack, the beta wolf may challenge him or her to a winner-take-all brawl. An omega wolf is a scapegoat, the lowest ranking member of the pack. The omega lives on the outskirts of the pack, usually eating last.

The omega serves as both a stress-reliever and instigator of play.

Morro chuckled lightly as he thought about the others and their dynamics. Cole, Nya, and Zane were clearly alphas and he believed Kai was on the line between alpha or a beta. He believed that Lloyd was also beta and Jay was the omega of the pack. His smile fell slightly as he thought about his roll in their pack. He was a newcomer, a lone wolf, he didn't have a place in their pack. At its heart, a wolf pack is a family. Packs usually have between five and ten members, although some packs do become huge.

Counting the adults and only the werewolves, Lloyd's entire pack measured at ten members, not including Morro.

A normal wolf pack's size changes year to year, as new pups are born and older offspring leave to find a mate and set up their own pack. Sometimes a pack will adopt a lone wolf. One that's not part of the original family. Much likes the others did with Morro. But packs aren't just a big unruly group of wolves. They have a structure, and each wolf knows its place. So in many ways, a wolf pack was pretty much like any normal human family.

The leaders keep the rest of the pack in line with body language and snarling, but rarely have to resort to fighting.

No wolf wants to get injured or fall out with the rest of the pack. Wolf packs can be different sizes, but essentially they're all pretty close groups. When Morro was taken into Lloyd's pack, they all made sure that he knew he had their help and support whenever he needed it. But there's always a bit of giving and taking and there are certain responsibilities that come with being in a pack. That's never more true than when things start to go wrong.

Morro paused in worry.

He didn't know these people that well and if anything went wrong, he didn't know if they would be there and have his back. Being part of a pack, like being part of a family, sometimes has its downsides, but definitely has its advantages too. Wolves are highly social creatures. They work collectively to bring lots of good things that benefited the whole group and helps them to survive in the world. The pack is particularly important when it comes to looking after their young pups.

Pups are key to continuing the family bloodline, so the whole pack gets involved in raising them.

During the first month, the pups stay in the den with their mother, suckling for milk and keeping warm. The father's job, along with the rest of the packs, is to bring food for the female and protects the den from any predators. Morro wondered what his parents would have been like. Would his mother have been one of those soccer moms, or one of the mothers who baked cakes? Would his father have been the breadwinner for the family?

Would he be one of those suburban dads or would he have been strict with his son?

Feeling the tears growing behind his eyes as he thought about what could have been, Morro forced all those hard feelings back down to where they came from and finished reading the book. The pups gradually learn to eat meat and all the wolves help feed them. When the adults return from a kill, the pups pester them until they're sure they have every last bit, licking their mouths to make them regurgitate the meat. Even when the mother leaves to hunt for food, the pups are never left alone.

Another pack member, a babysitter, stays behind.

The success or failure of a wolf pack depends on the strength of its leaders. They need to provide food and security, but they also need to teach the kids the family business. The art of hunting. So the pack acts as a nursery. It starts with play; pups spend a lot of their time playing, which lets them practice the skills they need for hunting, pouncing, stalking, and chasing one another. The older wolves would sometimes get involved too.

They let the pups tug on their ears and even bringing back toys for them to play with.

As they grow up they join the rest of the pack on hunting trips to see the more experienced wolves do their work. In the meantime, the youngsters also learn how they can help the rest of the pack find food. The pack needs many ears, eyes, and noses on the job, especially since prey can be spread over such vast distances. When it comes to bringing down a large animal, teamwork is extremely useful. Even though single wolves are able to bring down big prey on their own it's often easier with a few of the more experienced wolves to move in and help out.

Working together is essential to when it comes to protecting what's theirs, be that the food they've just caught or the territory that they live and hunt in.

There really is strength in numbers and many great reasons to be part of a pack. It far outweighs being alone. Packs give security, food, companionship, all the things wolves and werewolves want and need if they are to survive and thrive in this world.

"Getting some reading done?" Kai smirked as Morro jumped out of the armchair.

"N-No! I was just... looking at the pictures." Morro blushed as the rest of them came down to join them. He watched as Dr. Julien tightly locked the large steel door behind them and Zane placed the large chunks of meat in the metal bowls. Dr. Julien placed the keys on a high hook next to the door.

"Are we ready?" Cole smiled giddily as a familiar feeling came over their bodies.

"Ready as we'll ever be." Zane sighed and they all stood to attention, waiting for the inevitable. Within seconds, they all transformed. As they recovered, Morro looked at the others. This was the first time he had seen Dr. Julien, Cole, and Kai in wolf form. Dr. Julien and Kai were around his size but Cole was clearly the biggest out of all of them. Kai's fur was brown like Morro's only it was much lighter. Cole's fur was pitch black, and Dr. Julien's fur was snowy white.

As soon as the transformation had finished Zane bolted into the tunnel and out into the night.

Morro dived for the bowls and devoured a large chunk of meat. Kai and Cole didn't bat an eye at this and they ran into the tunnel and out into the forest. Dr. Julien hopped onto one of the armchairs and curled up to sleep. He was too old to be running around the forest. It was best to leave that to the cubs. After he had finished stuffing his muzzle, Morro licked his sharp teeth and quickly ran out to join the others, leaving the elderly father alone in the basement...

* * *

The nightly forest was a blur of greens and dark browns flash passed them as Zane dashed through the dark and twisted forest trees. The wind flowed through his thick fur as he ran as fast as he could from his problems. Everything had been going wrong lately. He knew his father was getting more sick, even if the older man was trying to hide it from his son. To top it all off, Pixel was stalking two of his best friends, thinking that they were monsters so they all had to keep their distance.

Not only that but now three of his friends were stranded on an island with her during a full moon, now their secret was in more danger than ever.

It was times like this when he wished he had someone to talk to, an adult. Unfortunately, he had no choice but to endure and hope they all made it out of this mess in one piece. He soon found himself standing on a cliff overlooking the forest. From here he could eye almost everything. He could see the entire forest and some of the city under a starry night sky. Feeling all these different feelings and emotions bubbling in his chest, Zane howled to the moon...

* * *

Kai barked and howled as he ran around the forest in joy.

He loved spending the full moon at Zane's place. He and Cole had split up and he had no idea where Morro and Zane were. As he ran blissfully through the forest, he came to stop when he found himself in front of a raging river. He was about to turn around when he saw some large rocks in the middle of the river, forming some kind of bridge. Not wanting to walk all the around, Kai took a chance and jumped. Thankfully, he landed on the first rock with no problem.

Kai was about to jump again, only to yelp loudly as his paws suddenly lost their footing on the wet rock, and he fell into the freakishly cold water.

The brown wolf almost passed out as the freezing liquid shot through his fur and soaked him. Terror washed over him and he scrambled for the surface as he flowed down the river at terrifying speed. Unfortunately, it was now useless as his joints locked up. He could feel the air leaving his lungs but he couldn't keep his head above the water. He failed wildly and managed to get his snout out of the water, but he was still sinking. It didn't help that he had never learned to swim as a human or a wolf.

Kai attempted to howl for help, but it ended up making him swallow a ton of river water.

His head went under again, and he swallowed another mouthful of water. He flailed his paws like mad, but nothing was working. He was sinking. As his wolf body slowly sank to the bottom of the river, his gold eyes started to glaze over as his life flashed before his eyes. He would never be able to see Nya, his parents, or his friends again. He wondered when he died would his body return to its human form or would he remain a wolf?

Would his remains be found by a stranger and be stuffed and mounted above a fireplace?

Suddenly something hard clamped tightly onto his front right paw, and he let out a garbled shout, which filled his mouth with more water. Whatever had grabbed him hurriedly yanked up him up and dragged him onto the muddy riverbank. Kai coughed up some water and slowly blinked open his yellow eyes. He was shocked to see a soaked Morro standing over him, his eyes wide with adrenaline. He had heard Kai's loud yelp of fear and ran to see what was wrong.

As soon as he had realized Kai had fallen into the river Morro's mind went blank and before he knew it he was diving into the river after him.

He still had Kai's right front paw in his sharp teeth. That must have been what Kai had felt drag him out the river. Kai had no idea where Morro had come from, but right now that didn't really matter to him. For a second, the two wolves just stared at each other. Morro finally registered the taste of blood on his tongue and spat the paw out, flinching when Kai let out a pained yelp. Kai looked up at him with a look that asked Morro why.

Why would he risk his own life to save him?

They barely even knew each other. Unfortunately, Morro couldn't answer him, due to the fact they couldn't talk in wolf form, but mainly because he didn't know himself. Kai raggedly coughed up the last bits of water and tried to stand up. Only for his injured and bleeding paw to suddenly buckle and he fell down to the mud with a pained whimper. Morro started to panic. Kai needed to get back to the house until the sun rose, but he couldn't walk.

Morro considered leaving to find the others but decided against it.

Just then, Morro remembered what he had read in the book back at Zane's home. Casting a look at Kai, Morro braced himself and let out a howl, desperate howl into the starry night sky. They waited there for a few minutes until Cole suddenly jumped down into the river bank. Cole immediately rushed to Kai's right side as Morro moved to the other and together they helped him to his feet. Keeping pressure off his injured paw, Kai leaned against his two heroes as they slowly hopped back towards the house.

Kai's muscles were aching like mad.

His front right paw was completely numb, and it barely hurt. Only a dull throb shot through the limb. Cole gave the chestnut brown wolf a concerned glance as he shivered. He was soaked to the skin and shaking like a leaf. Cole gave his friend a dull whimper in worry. It had a sort of calming effect on Kai, even in his muddled state. He gave a weak, yet reassuring look, as they finally made it back to the house. After a few minutes of struggling, Kai, Cole, and Morro finally managed to crawl through the hatch and into the basement where they saw a still sleeping Dr. Julien.

The only acknowledgment the older wolf gave them was a flick of the ear.

Slowly, Cole and Morro led Kai over to where the biggest and most comfortable pillows and allowed him to lie on them. Seeing that he was still shivering badly, Cole also led down and curled up against him, using his own body to warm Kai back up. Realizing that it was almost sunrise, Morro didn't see the point of going back outside, so he too led next to Kai. As Morro also carefully curled up next to the injured wolf, Kai looked at him and for the first time, Kai trusted him...

* * *

Morro groaned as he slowly regained consciousness, the first thing he registered was the fact that he was naked and freezing. He groggily opened his pale green eyes and saw that he was lying alone in the large basement. Slowly sitting up, he groaned as he sat up and stretched his tired muscles. It was then that his hearing picked up to the sound of someone eating and the smell of bacon. He looked over to one of the armchairs and saw Kai sat there.

Kai was now fully dressed and judging by the smell of him and the fact that his usually spikey hair flowed down to his shoulders, Morro believed that he had just had a shower.

He had bandages around his right wrist and forearm and a plate of a full breakfast sat on his knees.

"You better not have rabies," Kai smirked when he saw that Morro was finally awake.

"How bad is it?" He asked, not taking his eyes off Kai's bandaged arm.

"Not that bad, the doc says it'll be healed in a few days." He shrugged as he stood up with his plate. "When you get dressed, there'll be a full breakfast waiting for you upstairs; Zane's treat." He said and laughed when a bright blush spread across Morro's face, the lone wolf only just remembering that he was completely naked as a newborn baby.

"R-Right... thanks." Morro gulped, trying to cover himself. Kai nodded and moved to the door, only to stop and look over his shoulder at his savior.

"By the way, thanks for saving my life, I owe ya." He promised with an unusually kind smile before he ran up the stairs where Dr. Julien, Zane, and Cole were enjoying their own breakfast. As the hotheaded teen left, Morro felt a weak smile slowly growing on his face. Maybe he did belong in this pack after all...


	7. Moon Cool

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the energy of his first full transformation still coursing through his veins, Lloyd succumbs to its power and risks  
> not only alienating his friends but also their secret when Pixel and Harumi start to notice his odd, new bad boy  
> personality...

After their first full moon transformations, Nya and Lloyd had been vibrating with energy nonstop. They were acting like toddlers on a constant sugar rush. Thankfully Nya had managed to get a grip and calmed down after a day. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for Lloyd. That morning at school the principal had gathered everyone in the pack's grade in the gym to watch Harumi and her cheerleading squad street dance with Harumi in the lead, as usual.

Harumi examined the crowd as she danced and smiled when she saw Vince Roberts checking her out.

Vince Roberts was one of the most handsome and popular kids in their grade. He played in a band and was also very rich. Not as rich as her, Pixel, Dareth, or Zane, but it was enough to be noticeable. It was well known that he was looking for some dancers to be in his next show, which was the main reason Harumi had requested to do this. If she could convince Vince to hire her, then not only would she become more popular but he might take even more interest in her.

While everyone was watching the bleached hair girl dance, Lloyd was rocking in his seat with wild eyes.

"Lloyd?" Nya asked her friend when she noticed him fidgeting.

All of a sudden the blonde boy shot out of his seat and ran onto the stage. As soon as Harumi saw him, she froze and looked at him in shock, confusion, and a hint of disgust. Everyone watched to shock and amazement as Lloyd not only started street dancing out of nowhere, but his natural moves beat Harumi's hard practiced moves by a landslide. Harumi desperately looked to her squad and the teachers for support, hoping they would stop him.

Unfortunately, they seemed to be enjoying his show more than hers.

Cole and the pack, minus Nya and Morro, watched in horror as they watched Lloyd dance, realizing what was happening. As Lloyd shredded the dance floor, Pixel looked closely and gasped when she saw Lloyd's eyes changed from his normal emerald green to a haunting yellow for a split second before turning back to normal. Just like Kai and Nya's did in the fire...

* * *

After the street dancing show, the teachers instructed the students to return to class, and Lloyd was pulled into the hallway by the principal. The others wanted to reach Lloyd but they were pushed down the halls by the wave of students and pushy teachers. While the other students walked past them the principal was giving Lloyd a very long and boring lecture.

"Lloyd Garmaddon, despite that being entertaining, your behavior is completely unacceptable!" He exclaimed. "Acting out is not COOL!"

"That was cool, Lloyd!" One of the students laughed as they walked past, leaving the principal very unamused as Lloyd turned his attention back to him.

"You're walking on very thin ice, young man!" The principal warned before storming away as Zane and Jay caught up to their friend.

"You almost lost it." Zane hissed quietly, clearly very annoyed.

"I had it under control." Lloyd rolled his eyes.

"If you say so," Jay muttered, not wanting to get into a fight.

"After your first transformation, you can transform in a second, look at what happened when Morro first came here," Zane stated.

"You need to lighten up, nobody noticed!" Lloyd scoffed and walked away. Zane and Jay shared a look but said nothing as they went to their next class. None of them noticed Pixel eyeing all three of them from the cover of a corner. Thankfully she had been too far away to hear their conversation, but that did nothing to deter her suspicions. She saw something happened with Lloyd's eyes, like what happened with Kai and Nya. Not only that but since when could he street dance?

Pixel Borg may not have been the most athletic student, but she knew that it takes years of practice to do those moves, something she knew Lloyd didn't have

This just provided more evidence in her mind. Kai and Nya weren't the only beasts in Ninjago. After the last full moon, she was certain Jay and Lloyd were as well. It was all adding up now...

* * *

After receiving a lecture from the principal and two of his friends, Lloyd headed for his locker to gather some stuff for his next lesson. It really irritated him that no one seemed to like his talents. He thought his friends especially would enjoy seeing Harumi knocked down a peg or two, but he guessed he was wrong. As Lloyd was gathering his books, his locker door suddenly slammed shut. He looked to his right and saw Vince Roberts smiling at him.

"That was amazing earlier, I had no idea you were into street dance." Vince smiled.

"Yeah, big time." Lloyd shrugged.

"Well, I was wondering if I could possibly get a lesson? Off you?"

"I don't know, it's all pretty instinctual, I don't know if I could teach that." Lloyd apologized.

"It's cool, but if you change your mind call me." Vince sighed and handed Lloyd a piece of paper with his phone number on it. Lloyd looked at the number and rolled his eyes as he crumpled it up and tossed into his pocket before heading to his next class, completely oblivious to Harumi, who stood a little further up the hall, glaring daggers at his back. First Lloyd takes over her dance and now he was trying to take over her future career.

She wasn't worried, however.

She could use this to her advantage...

* * *

That afternoon everyone was in their shared home economics class. They were all set up in separate groups. Lloyd was with Pixel and Cole, Kai was with Zane and Jay and Nya was with Morro and Dareth. As Lloyd was alone at the far side of the room, gathering some extra ingredients, Harumi and her friend Maggie suddenly came over to him. The teacher was watching them closely in case he had to stop a fight.

"Harumi wants to know if you want to come to her party on her parents', it's gonna be huge." Maggie smiled widely, showing most of her pearly white teeth.

"Everybody who's anybody's gonna be there, it's eight-thirty on Friday, be there before 10 'cause that's when the yot sets off," Harumi added.

"Sorry, I can't," Lloyd stated, almost coldly. Instantly, the two diva's happy expressions vanished.

"What do you mean, you can't come?"

"I've got a movie night at Cole's."

"But I was wondering if you'd do your street dance at the party, you were amazing!" Harumi pleaded.

"I-I can't let my friends down."

"Well, I'd really like the others to come to the party too." Harumi gagged through gritted teeth. She didn't even want Lloyd there, nevermind his dark squad, but in order for her plan to work, she needed Lloyd there, and it seemed that the only way he'd come is if his friends were there too. After a moment of thinking her offer over, Lloyd agreed and went to tell the others.

"Guess what, we're all invited to Harumi's party!" He smiled at Pixel and Cole.

"You're kidding, right?" Cole asked.

"Harumi doesn't exactly like us." Pixel reminded.

"That's not true, she just invited us!"

"Only so you'd go because you're suddenly so popular." Cole frowned.

"Come on, I just want to have a bit of fun for a change!"

"So we don't have fun?" Pixel asked in disbelief.

"That's not what I meant!" Lloyd cried. "They're just being nice!"

"Come on, Lloyd, don't be so naive!" Warned Cole.

"Yes, there's an ulterior motive with them." Pixel glared at Harumi as the lead cheerleader lazily threw her ingredients into a mixing bowl, remembering how she had left her for dead in a burning classroom. "They don't like you, today they think you're cool, tomorrow you'll just be plain old Lloyd Garmadon again."

"Well, you know what? This plain old Lloyd Garmadon is going to that party, so count me out of movie night!" Lloyd snarled and stormed out of the classroom, despite the teacher's protest...

* * *

Due to his storming out of home economics and his takeover of Harumi's dance, Lloyd was given detention after school and when he finally got home he found Wu sat in an armchair reading a thick book and he could hear his mother in the kitchen. With an irritated huff, Lloyd slumped onto the couch and watched TV, and turned to volume all the way up. Wu quickly snatched the remote and turned the volume down, giving his nephew a glare as he returned to his book.

Lloyd didn't say anything and continued to glare daggers at the TV.

He seemed to have a permanent scowl on his face. The two male werewolves sat in silence for a few minutes until Misako walked in from the kitchen, a hot cup of fresh tea in her hands.

"Hi honey, how was school?" She smiled as she took a seat in the other armchair.

"Whatever," Lloyd grumbled, not taking his eyes off the screen

"I believe someone's grumpy." Wu frowned.

"I'm not grumpy! Stop talking to me like I'm a baby!" Lloyd snapped, Misako simply frowned at his odd behavior.

"Does my little cub want some tea?" She smiled kindly.

"I am not a cub anymore, I'm a wolf!" He screamed as he shot up and ran up to his room for some space. As soon as the coast was clear, Wu sighed and closed his book to look at his sister-in-law.

"You do remember that this is normal after a werewolf's first transformation?" He asked and she nodded sadly. After their first transformation, young werewolves can become very moody, like human teenagers. They can start to rebel against normal life, and maybe even be forced to do dramatic things they later regret. Strangely though, this seemed to mostly affect males more than females.

"I know and it's only gonna get worse before it gets better." She sighed sadly, her little boy was growing up too fast. Meanwhile, upstairs in his room, Lloyd had put on his headphones and started blasting music so he wouldn't have to listen to what his mom and uncle were saying about him. As he listened to his music he looked himself over in the mirror and glared...

* * *

The next day at school, all the talk about Lloyd's incredible street dancing skills had quickly died down as gossip usually did in high school and the students moved onto the next interesting thing. While the pack was sat in their homeroom, they all wondered what was keeping Lloyd. The others had told Nya and Morro what was wrong with Lloyd and they all hoped that he had made it through this phase and was back to normal, even though they knew that was very unlikely.

Suddenly the hallway doors burst open and Lloyd finally walked in.

When his friends and the other students saw him, however, their jaws dropped to the floor in shock. He was wearing a black leather jacket with black leather pants and a ripped, dark forest green shirt. He was also wearing a black belt choker and had sliver rings in his ears. His normally blonde hair had been dyed with jet black streaks with green highlights and he wore heavy black eyeliner. All the students started whispering and staring as Lloyd took his seat.

Lloyd just smiled, enjoying all, the attention.

"Ah, Lloyd." Miss Koko said when she saw his new look. "Who dressed you this morning, Edward Scissorhands?"

"Who dressed you this morning? Your grandma?" Lloyd casually remarked, causing most of the other kids in the class to gasp and laugh. His friends just looked at him like he had grown two heads. They all, minus Pixel, of course, knew that this was because of his first transformation and that it could cause some temporary personality changes, but they didn't expect anything this drastic.

"Get out of this classroom right now." The teacher hissed with a face of fury. Lloyd rolled his eyes in annoyance as he stood up and left...

* * *

Later that morning Lloyd, Zane, Pixel, and Nya arrived at their science class. Lloyd had been causing problems all day, things the teachers would expect from Harumi or Chad, maybe even Kai or Morro, but never from the usually calm and gentle Lloyd Garmadon. While most of the students were doing their work Lloyd was messing around with a test tube full of green goo, flipping up in the air and catching it. It was so distracting, Pixel had to move to a lone table at the other end of the classroom, way from the others.

Now they were alone, Nya and Zane moved closer to each other to talk.

"I'm really worried, Zane," Nya said to her quiet friend. "He's never acted like this before, it's like he's a different person; I know Kai was a little aggressive after his first transformation but he was nothing like this."

"Mr. Garmadon." The science teacher suddenly said, finally noticing Lloyd messing with the test tube. "This is chemistry, not a circus."

"Yeah, I'm testing gravity." He jeered and tossed the tube into the air but made no move to catch it. It shattered on the cold floor with the green goo spilling everywhere. Most of the other students burst out laughing while Lloyd's friends and the teacher frowned in shock and disappointment.

"Be quiet!" The teacher exclaimed and they all went silent. "Lloyd, clear that up, and see me at lunchtime for detention."...

* * *

That afternoon, the lunch bell sounded at the entire student body flooded into the halls and began to flock toward the cafeteria. As Lloyd stumbled along with the crowd of students, almost as if in a daze, Morro suddenly appeared beside him.

"Running helps." The lone wolf grinned until he saw Lloyd's confused expression. "After my first transformation, I must have run a marathon letting off steam."

"Sweet, let's go."

"What, now?

"Yeah," Lloyd smirked, he wasn't going to stupid detention. "I'll race you!" He laughed and he and Morro bolted out of the school and towards the forest like they did with Nya during exam week. Regrettably, neither of them noticed Pixel watching them with curiosity as they ran towards the forest. She'd bet all her research that they had a favorite spot out there in the forest. Somewhere remote and secluded. She was certain that Lloyd, Jay, Nya, Kai, and now Morro were all werewolves

She didn't know if Cole or Zane were as well, but it wouldn't surprise her if they knew the others' secrets.

They had their trust and it was a pretty dangerous secret to hide. It was time Pixel found out that secret too. Without hesitation, she took off to the library to begin her research...

* * *

Meanwhile, back in the cafeteria, the others were sat at their table at the back of the lunch hall. They had noticed the science teacher looking around for Lloyd who, according to Morro via text, was blowing off some steam in the forest instead of going to his detention. Zane had also received a text from Pixel, saying that she was studying in the library.

"Have you guys figured out what's up with him lately?" Cole whispered to the others, worried for Lloyd.

"You know what's wrong with him." Jay frowned. When they had had their first transformations, they all, minus Nya, had also had a personality change. Kai, Jay, and Cole had become more aggressive and hotheaded whereas Zane had become more of a loner and was even more quiet than usual.

"Yeah, but how much longer? Ours only lasted a day at the most." Kai agreed.

"It'll wear off in Lloyd's own time, we all just have to be patent, we just have to keep an eye on him," Zane reassured.

"Please tell me that doesn't mean what I think it means." Nya pleaded...

* * *

Pixel sighed as she scrolled through dozens of articles on werewolves on the school's computer, but there was so much werewolf lore that it was difficult to separate fact from fiction. Throughout history, wolves have been the subject of many a myth and a lot have been quite unfavorable. We even have negative phrases in our everyday language relating to wolves. Stuff like, a wolf in sheep's clothing, which means when someone appears to be nice but isn't.

There were many stories where wolves play the bad guy.

In the Bible, they are frequently portrayed as villainous and sly. In fairy tales and fables, they are often cunning and greedy; like the deceitful wolf in little red riding hood and the wolf that tries to trick the three little pigs. Then there are all the horror stories of werewolves. Pixel paused in thought. Maybe all those stories like little red riding hood were real stories about humans encounter with werewolves. A werewolf, sometimes known as a Lycanthrope, is a human with the ability to become a wolf-like creature whose transformation is often associated with the full moon.

In between these times, the human may display wolf-like behavior.

Pixel thought back over all the years she had known the others. Unfortunately, she couldn't recall a time when they acted like wolves when in human forms. They must have been good at controlling their monstrous instincts. As the werewolf matures, he becomes less playful and more aggressive. Werewolves are proud creatures and constantly preen themselves and they are cunning creatures that will use anything to their advantage.

Realizing the time, Pixel saved all the data to a pen drive and rushed to delete the search history, and rushed to her next class...

* * *

After nearly half an hour of running through the cold, quiet forest, Lloyd and Morro came to stop next to the same tiny, calming stream as before. Morro chuckled breathlessly as he leaned against a large oak tree, hoping the run had done its job while Lloyd simply laughed madly as he freely danced around.

"Look, I get it." Morro suddenly said. "Right now, it seems like nothing matters but the wolf, but normal people can't street-dance without practice; don't you think it seemed weird? You're using your powers to show off." Glared the lone wolf.

"You sound like me." Lloyd scoffed, completely uninterested.

"Then take your own advice."

"Why? You never do."

"When this passes, you'll want your friends back."

"I've got friends." He snarled before running back towards the school, leaving an annoyed Morro alone. Sometimes caring about others was a pain...

* * *

Harumi was over the moon with excitement as she looked at her reflection in the mirror in her locker. Vince Roberts was coming to the party and he was bringing a few friends from his band. Everything was finally going right for her. Now she just had to tell Lloyd that the party was at the roller disco instead of her parents' yot. They were having a seniors night at the roller disco and Harumi knew that it was going to be gross. Luckily her party wasn't at the roller disco.

The roller disco was at the other end of the city from the docks.

With all the traffic at that time of night, there was no way Lloyd could get from there to the docks before 10 pm. Even if by some miracle Lloyd did manage to make it to the docks, it would be too late as they would have already set sail and there would be no risk of him outshining Harumi on her big night. Everything was coming together. With that thought in mind, she finished applying her makeup and closed her locker when she saw Lloyd sneaking into the school.

"Hey, Lloyd!" She called and ran over to him. "I need to tell you something."

"You can tell me at the party." He growled and made to leave when she suddenly grabbed his arm.

"That's the thing, you see, there are so many people going now, I've had to get a bigger venue at the roller disco." She explained. "There's a stage and everyone's dying to see you dance again!"

"Sweet." Lloyd nodded when Kai suddenly appeared with a look of thunder.

"Can we talk?" He asked, though his tone sounded more like a command.

"I'm talking with my friend." Lloyd shrugged.

"Yeah? Well, one of your OLD friends thinks that you've turned into a monster." Kai hissed. "We need to discuss... the developments." He added, casting a look to Harumi. Knowing what he meant, Lloyd sighed and turned to the bleached hair girl.

"So, roller disco at eight? I'll see you there." He said as he pulled his arm out of Harumi's grip and walked away, missing the satisfied look in her jade eyes. Once they were alone, Kai boxed the other werewolf in.

"You need to be careful, Pixel's certain you're a werewolf now too!" He warned.

"I am a werewolf, and you need to embrace it!" Lloyd snapped, feeling the wolf clawing at his mind, trying to get free. "I finally understand it, and you're scared!"

"I'm not scared of anything!" Kai snarled, starting to lose his temper. The two got up close and into each other's faces as they began breathing heavily and growling like wild animals. Just then, their enhanced hearing picked up the sound of footsteps running right at them. Quickly, the two boys jumped away from each other just as the doors to the other hallway burst open and Pixel Borg came running into the hall they were in.

"What are you doing?!" She cried, having heard the growls from the end of the other hall.

"Are you spying on us?!" Lloyd snarled, remembering what Kai had said about Pixel figuring out their secret.

"N-No, I heard strange noises." She quickly said.

"Harumi's right, you are a freak!" He spat before he pushed past her and disappeared around the corner.

"I'm sorry, Pix." Kai sighed as he chased after the teen, but he was long gone...

* * *

"If you think you're going to a party after the call we've had from the principal, you are mistaken!" Wu glared as he and Misako stood in front of an enraged Lloyd with their arms crossed. As soon as Lloyd had gotten home he wanted to head to his room to get ready for Harumi's party, only to find his way blocked by his mother and uncle.

"You don't understand!" He cried. "I'm the reason everyone's going to the roller disco!"

"Well, they'll be sorely disappointed then," Misako said sternly. "Now do what we say!"

"NO!" He snapped before he suddenly low threatening growl.

"Oh, no, you don't!" She snapped, realizing he was trying to intimidate and challenge them. "Get to your room!"

"You're both fucking old dogs!" The teen roared as he shoved past them and ran up to his room, making sure to slam the door extra hard. The angry werewolf stayed in his room for the next hour, getting ready for the party. As soon as he was done he blasted his stereo to full volume so his family wouldn't hear him as he carefully opened his bedroom window and climbed out.

As soon as his feet touched the ground, he made to leave, only to jump when he saw his uncle and mother standing there with smug looks on their faces.

"You know what, you were right, Lloyd," Misako smirked.

"We are indeed old dogs and we know all the tricks," Wu added and before Lloyd could comprehend what was happening, the two adults had grabbed him, dragged him down to the basement, through him into the den, and locked the door.

"This is abuse! I'm calling Social Services!" Lloyd threatened, but it was useless as he heard them walking back upstairs. He wouldn't let this stop him, however. He waited for them to let their guard down and a half an hour later, he ran to the other end of the basement where the iron doors that led outside were. Without hesitating, he threw the doors open with a loud bang and climbed out. Hearing his family running for the door, Lloyd ran off and disappeared into the night before the two adults made it out of the house.

The teen laughed loudly as he ran through the city and arrived at the roller disco, where he could hear people laughing and music playing.

He went inside and was confused when he saw that there were only seniors inside, laughing and enjoying themselves. The only teens there were the employees who looked like they'd rather be anywhere else. It didn't take Lloyd long to realize he had been tricked. As he stepped out of the roller disco, he felt his body boil with rage as the wolf bubbled to the surface. Bearing his still human teeth, Lloyd ran in the direction of the docks...

* * *

Back at her father's penthouse Pixel was also getting ready for Harumi's party. Normally she wouldn't even consider going, but she knew Lloyd and the others were going at Harumi's request. She was also bringing her trusty camera with her. This was her chance to catch a werewolf. Lloyd was going to be showing off his street dancing again. With any luck, his eyes would change again. All she need was a second to snap the picture she needed.

If his eyes changed this could be Pixel's chance to prove he's not human.

Hopefully, when she had evidence of Lloyd being a werewolf, like falling dominos, the others would be exposed as well. After looking herself over, feeling incredibly exposed, she grabbed her purse and camera and ran down to the cab waiting for her...

* * *

"Well look who decided to show up," Chad smirked as Cole, Kai, Jay, Nya, Morro, and Pixel boarded the yot. There were a lot of bright lights, loud music, delicious food, and people having a great time. As soon as she saw them, Harumi groaned in frustration. She had hoped that Lloyd had told them that the party had been moved to the roller disco and they had all gone together.

"At least you look decent," She smirked as she looked them over.

"Where's Lloyd?" Nya growled, being unable to pick up Lloyd's scent through all the teenage hormones and salty seawater. Harumi just shrugged and she and Chad just walked off into the crowd.

"Let's split up and find him," Cole told them before walking away with Kai, whether to look for Lloyd or the buffet table was anyone's guess. Morro wandered off on his own while Jay and Nya went their own way, leaving Zane and Pixel alone. Zane made to talk to her, but she quietly gripped her camera and walked away to get a better angle to take the picture. As everyone mingled for a few minutes, Maggie suddenly stepped onto a podium, microphone in hand.

"Good evening everyone! Sadly, Lloyd had another dancing engagement tonight!" She exclaimed and everyone started complaining. "But we have something even better for you! Harumi and her amazing street-dancing moves!" Maggie shouted as the DJ started playing music and Harumi began dancing as the crowd started cheering and chanting her name. Upon hearing Lloyd wasn't coming, Pixel sighed and made to leave, only to freeze when she saw an enraged Lloyd step onto the boat.

His green eyes scanned the crowd and glared when he saw Harumi dancing.

He was going to dance and put her in her place. As he began to make his way over to the dance floor, Kai suddenly appeared out of nowhere and gripped his arm tightly.

"What are you doing?" He whispered.

"Showing Harumi who's top dog!"

"Are you crazy?! You nearly transformed last time!" Kai angrily hissed only grunt when Lloyd kneed him in the stomach and charged at Harumi. Bursting through the crowd, Lloyd walked over to her and grabbed her mid twirl. Taking a second to gather her senses, Harumi's eyes widened in shock and slight fear when she realized who it was.

"So you think you be my moves? Beat this bitch!" He jeered and started dancing with more grace and talent than Harumi knew was possible. As the teen werewolf danced with a big grin on his face, Pixel moved in close and aimed her camera at the boy, waiting for his eyes to change again. She frowned in confusion, however, when he finished and started posing for the crowd, no yellow eyes insight. As he milked all the attention, Harumi saw red.

That was HER party!

This was HER moment of glory! Not Lloyd Garmadon's! Baring her white teeth, she suddenly charged towards him. For Lloyd, the world seemed to slow down for a moment. He turned around and saw Harumi running at him and simply stepped out the way at the last second. Harumi gasped as she ran past her target and straight into the buffet table, causing it to break and food covering her and the floor. Everyone on the boat stared at her in silence until they all burst into fits of laughter.

Feeling the hot tears welling up in her jade eyes and her cheeks burning in embarrassment, Harumi covered her face and ran away into the yot, away from the judging eyes.

"Look what you've done, Lloyd!" Maggie spat at him. "Stealing Harumi's limelight at her birthday party! That's low!" She hissed. Lloyd glared at her before chasing after Harumi. With a heavy sigh, Kai followed the angsty teen. Following her scent, Lloyd tracked Harumi down to a cabin with the door locked.

"Harumi, I'm sorry." He shouted through the door.

"Fuck off! You ruined my party like you ruined my dance at the gym!" She howled.

"You brought it on yourself! You sent me to the wrong place!" He snapped as Kai walked up towards him. Kai was about to pull Lloyd away when he suddenly picked up the sound of a pained groan from the bathroom a little ways down the hall. Casting Lloyd a look, Kai stepped into the bathroom and found Cole curled up on the bathroom floor.

"What are you doing?" The brunette asked, but the large teen just shrugged. "Let's just go." Kai sighed and turned to leave, only to stop when he heard Cole start gagging. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Too much cake..." Cole whined, turning pale and Kai's amber eyes widened in realization.

"You keep it in! You cannot do that in here!" He snapped, only to flinch away when Cole suddenly lunged towards the pristine white toilet and started vomiting noisily into it. Kai could only sigh as he shut the bathroom door and rub the black-haired teens back in comfort as he hurled his guts out. Lloyd heard the vomiting but chose to ignore it.

"I'm sorry, OK?" Harumi finally said. "I was just desperate to get Vince here!"

"You used me!"

"I've always had a crush on him, then you take over my dance in the gym and he doesn't even notice me!"

"He was just asking me for dancing lessons!"

"Yeah, but he wants you in his next music video 'cause you're an awesome dancer!"

"I'm a terrible dancer!" Lloyd argued and quickly thought of a lie. "It was Cole, he's been teaching me!" He suddenly said, and Kai and Cole shared a look of confusion.

"Cole can't street-dance!" Harumi scoffed.

"I swear! His dad's a professional dancer! Every spare second, up in the forest, and at his house, he's teaching me!" Lloyd explained when he was suddenly pushed away from the door by Maggie and another cheerleader.

"You all right, babes?" Maggie asked.

"Vince is asking after you!" The other cheerleader added and Harumi opened the door with a big smile on her face.

"Shut up!" She squealed and went to the bathroom to clean the food off her dress. Before Lloyd could stop her, she opened the door and found Kai and Cole standing there. The toilet seat was put down, concealing the mess inside.

"What are you doing you freaks!?" Harumi growled. A feeling suddenly bloomed in his chest and Lloyd stood between his friends and the cheerleaders.

"Do you know what, they might be freaks, but they're MY freaks!" Lloyd snapped and turned to his friends. "Come on guys!" He said and practically dragged them away. The others found them and followed them off the boat just as it set off along the water. As they started to walk away, Pixel lagged behind a bit as she glared at the camera, wondering why Lloyd's eyes hadn't changed.

"That was funny!" Jay suddenly giggled as he remembered Harumi running into the table.

"I have got to get out of this stuff!" Lloyd groaned as he ripped the choker off his neck. "I can't stand it anymore, and I'm grounded!"

"Leave the bad boy thing to me," Morro smirked. They all chuckled until suddenly several loud high pitched screams erupted from the boat that was floating away from the docks and echoed throughout the air. Harumi and her friends must have found Cole's little surprise.

"Run!" Nya cried and they all took off running, laughing their heads off...


	8. Dark Side of The Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s the day of the dark moon, and Lloyd and the others have lost all of their werewolves powers, leaving them weak and defenseless, which doesn’t bode well for Pixel trying to prove that one of them is the beast of Ninjago Forest...

It had been nearly two weeks since Harmui's party and thankfully almost nobody remembered his amazing street dancing skills, having moved on to gossip about other trivial things. When he finally got home, Lloyd delivered the biggest apology of his life to his mother and uncle but was still grounded for a month. After three showers, he finally managed to wash the black and green dye out of his hair, returning it to its natural blonde state.

Lloyd groaned in pain and exhaustion as he sat up in his bed.

He felt like he had been in a boxing match with Cole and then been run over by an eighteen-wheeler truck. He remembered that his mother Misako had said that he would feel bad on the day of the new moon after his first transformation. The day where all his werewolf powers and his ability to transform disappeared. He had seen how the others had been during the new moon and had been dreading it. It was only going to get worse before it got better.

The closer it got to nightfall, the worse he'll feel He slowly got out of bed and stumbled down the stairs, still in his pajamas.

Down in the kitchen, the teen found his uncle and mother setting the table for breakfast. They looked terrible too, but having been through this for years, they had developed a somewhat tolerance for the sudden power loss. When Wu saw his nephew wasn't ready to go to school he frowned and crossed his arms.

"Why aren't you ready for school?"

"Uncle Wu, I don't feel right." He moaned as he slumped into a chair.

"I'm sorry Lloyd, you can't just decide not to go to school because your powers are drained," Misako said sympathetically.

"It'll be like this every month, and if you keep taking a day off school once a month eventually someone will notice," Wu explained.

"Come on honey, if the others can do it so can you." She added. Lloyd wanted to argue but he knew his mother and uncle were right. With another groan, he got up and went up to get changed...

* * *

"Whoa, you look like shit." Kai grimaced when he saw the Lloyd slowly walking towards them. His clothes were crumpled, his normally neat quills were a mess and he was sweating like a pig. To be honest Kai and the others didn't feel or look much better. They looked like something out of a zombie movie.

"Where's Nya and Zane?" Lloyd asked, realizing they were missing two people.

"They staying home." Cole groaned, almost falling asleep against the lockers.

"Why can't we stay at home," Morro whined weakly as they walked into their homeroom.

"I wish, but Uncle Wu said if I kept taking a day off school every month someone would notice." He yawned as he rested his head on his desk. "Didn't think you'd come in." He frowned when he finally noticed Morro's presence.

"I tried to get out of it but my foster parents wouldn't have it." He groaned.

"Now I know why my parents hate no moon days so much, I feel like death." Lloyd agreed, feeling his eyes growing heavy. He felt like a stone. Being stuck as a human sucked. Kai and Cole sighed as the blonde started to fall asleep. Morro was about to join him in dreamland when suddenly Miss Koko burst into the classroom with a bang. She examined the other students and frowned when she saw Lloyd asleep on his desk and frowned as she walked over to him.

When she still got no response she slammed her books on the desk, scaring poor Lloyd half to death.

"Stay awake please Mr. Garmadon," She said before walking back to her desk to do the register...

* * *

Later that day, Morro, Cole, and Jay arrived late for their science class. The teacher wanted to scold them, but one look at their ill state and she simply dismissed them and watched in concern as they took their seat at the same table with Pixel Borg. She had no idea why their parents had sent them to school in their state, especially when she heard Zane and Nya were at home, sick. Deciding that it was not any of her business, the teacher began the lesson.

Today's lesson was about evolution.

"We see ourselves as a completely different species to chimpanzees, and yet 98.4% of our DNA is the same." She explained and turned on a PowerPoint full of DNA results and diagrams. "What does that tell us about evolution?"

"We both share a common ancestor." Pixel said.

"Correct." The teacher smiled. "So, in your groups, I'd like you to list everything you think we have in common with chimpanzees in one column, and our differences in the other." She instructed and everyone began to work.

"I'm listing internal organs because they'll be similar." Pixel said as she, Jay, and Cole started listing other similarities while Lloyd and Morro stepped away.

"This is like us," Morro whispered.

"Don't compare me to a chimp." Lloyd glared.

"Not you, as in them." Morro quickly replied. "Werewolves are clearly a superior species."

"We're not a superior species, we're not even that different." He explained, choosing to ignore the irritated and slightly disgusted look Morro sent him. "We're just like normal humans but with a bit extra."

"How can you even say that?"

"Isn't this a shared discussion?" Cole suddenly asked. Thanks to the dark moon, he and Jay couldn't hear what they were talking about but judging by the looks on Lloyd and Morro's faces it was pretty serious.

"Sorry." Lloyd blushed and they walked closer to the table.

"Well, given the DNA evidence, I think there's a more interesting question." Pixel said, with a curious gleam in her eyes. "Could someone live and act like a human, but actually be a completely different species? What do you think, guys?" She asked, eyeing the boys closely.

"I think... it's completely irrelevant to the task." Replied a nervous Jay.

"Yeah, we're studying chimps, not aliens from Planet Pixel." Morro glared, causing a few of the other students to chuckle.

"Is our blood the same as a chimp?" Harumi asked the teacher.

"Not the same, no, but for this task, it's close enough to be called similar." She replied.

"So, other than body hair, what makes us different?" Morro asked their group. "Agility, the ability to climb trees, run on all fours, jump, leap..." Cole listed. As the class continued, the boys desperately tried to ignore the glances Pixel would send them when she thought they weren't paying attention. They wanted to believe that she was concerned due to their sickly state, but they knew better than that. They had managed to evaded her suspicions for a few weeks now, but who knew how long that would last.

The class quickly finished and Morro and Lloyd separated from the others to head to their next class, which they shared with Pixel.

"Does Pixel still have that stupid werewolf theory about us?" Morro suddenly asked, but Lloyd purposely stayed quiet. "She does, doesn't she?"

"I thought we were over this." He groaned. They all knew Morro would soon have no human friends and the second they had told him of Pixel's theory, he had insisted on cutting ties with her. "What am I supposed to do?"

"Talk some sense into her."

"I can't, you know what she's like." He sighed. "No-one believes her anyway."

"It's not the point." Morro snapped but Lloyd just sped up and walked away from Morro. The lone wolf didn't understand how hard this was for Lloyd and the others, especially Zane. They all just wanted their friend back...

* * *

Pixel sighed as she walked alone in the school halls to the drama class that she shared with Lloyd and Morro. Normally she would walk with Nya but the Smith sister had called in sick today. Today's science class had given her an idea and Pixel felt like kicking herself for not thinking of this before. She had to check one of the boys' blood. It could prove that they're werewolves. She needed to get their blood and compare it to a human's, probably hers.

If her theory was correct, then it would totally different.

Unfortunately the only time she could get close enough to get a sample was at school and she knew they would do anything to protect their secret and take back the sample. She would have to examine it at school, but the school didn't have the facilities to do that. She'd have to take it to a specialist laboratory where it can be analyzed properly. Looking at blood through a microscope would prove nothing. She would have to find a way to get that sample.

She knew what she'd seen that day in the fire.

A tiny part of her did feel dirty, however. These were her best friends she was thinking about. Best friends who were lying to her for years, especially since they knew how hard she searched for the beast. No matter what it took, Pixel Borg would find out the truth...

* * *

As soon as all the students arrived at their drama class, the drama teacher did a final headcount before starting with the lesson. He had all the students line up and stand to attention. He was a pretty strict and weird teacher. As the teacher did this, Lloyd flinched as his head thumped, still feeling terrible. As the day had slowly progressed he started to feel extremely dizzy, tired, and increasingly lightheaded. His friends were getting worried and said he should go home, but he was adamant that he was fine and he could last the day.

"Do you have another side, Morro? A dark side no-one else sees?" He asked as he slowly walked up and down the line of students. "What about you, Harumi?"

"What, like when you wear fake tan so you can't see the join?" The lead cheerleader asked, but the teacher rolled his eyes.

"All right, everyone line up in pairs a Jekyll and a Hyde in each group." He ordered and they all went into pairs with Chad and Morro partnered up. "This is a mirror exercise, Dr. Jekyll thinks he can control his dark side, but can he? Jekyll's, you lead, Hydes, you must obey your master, go!"

"Your Hydes," Chad stated and started doing star jumps, which Morro reluctantly copied.

"Keep up, Hydes! If you don't keep up, the Jekyll has won." The teacher instructed as the students copied each other. "All right, now then; Hydes, you take over, only you hate your Jekyll." He explained and they switched. "Hate him! Make it hard for him! You want to break free!"

"Come on, Hyde." Chad laughed as Morro jumped up and down. "You're being pathetic." The jock mocked as Morro glared daggers at him. He didn't deserve to be treated like this, he was above Chad and Pixel. He shouldn't have to fear them or any humans. He wanted to scream. He wanted to shout. He wanted to break the humans hold over him and his kind. He wanted to unleash the beast within. He wanted to roar at his oppressors until the whole world heard him.

Suddenly, Morro gasped as he felt light-headed.

The world suddenly tipped as he crumbled to the floor, unconscious. The last thing he heard was Lloyd calling his name before his mind went dark...

* * *

The young lone wolf groaned in pain as he returned to his senses. He slowly opened his eyes but quickly closed them again with he was blinded by a strong, white light. As his eyes adjusted to the light he saw that he lay in a hospital bed with an IV in his arm. He looked around and saw Cole, Lloyd, and Pixel standing by the door and a doctor was hovering over him.

"It's good to see you're awake Mr. Ren, you gave us quite a scare." He smiled as he wrote on a clipboard. "I'm Dr. Clarke, I'll be in charge of your care while you're here."

"W-What's going on?" Morro asked as he slowly sat up.

"You passed out at school and they brought you here," Cole explained.

"I just spoke to the school secretary, they can't get in touch with your foster parents." Dr. Clarke explained.

"Well, I'm not going to be here for long, am I?" Morro asked hopefully, he never likes hospitals, the smell always hurt his nose.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that." The doctor sighed. "You are pale and your pulse is weak." He explained and turned to the nurse. "Get me a full blood count, U&E, LFT, CRP, culture, and serology."

"What was that about?" Lloyd asked as the nurse left.

"We're going to run some tests on Morro's blood, just routine, in case he has an infection." Dr. Clarke explained and turned to his patient. "What were you doing when this happened?"

"Drama."

"Is that blood test really necessary?" Cole asked nervously.

"Probably not, but we ought to make sure."

"It's just a blood test, Cole, nothing to worry about." Pixel said, trying to suppress a satisfied smirk.

"Are you all right? You're both looking a bit pale yourself?" The doctor frowned when he noticed the look of the boys.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just... hungry," Lloyd said and Cole nodded in agreement.

"Go to the cafeteria, get some juice and something to eat." He ordered and the three teens left. "I'll be back to check on you when we get the results." He reassured his patient and left as well. As soon as he saw that the doctor had left Morro alone, Lloyd came to a stop, and Cole and Pixel turned to him.

"I'm just going to give Mom a call, let her know where I am." He said.

"Ok, come find us." Cole shrugged and practically dragged Pixel away as Lloyd pulled out his phone. He had to call Misako or Wu for help. If the hospital tested Morro's DNA they would know he wasn't human and that would be the end for them all. He growled in frustration as Misako's phone went to voicemail. She was probably too busy to come to the phone. He had to go to plan B. Checking to make sure the coast was clear, Lloyd ran back into Morro's hospital room where he found the lone wolf relaxing on the bed.

"You have to get out of here, like now!" The blonde boy said as he grabbed Morro's bag and coat.

"What? Why? I'm comfy." Morro moaned.

"The blood test, you idiot!" Lloyd snapped. "They'll see you're not human! They'll find out you're a werewolf!"

"Are you sure they can do that?"

"When I was seven I skewered my foot with a garden fork." He replied and Morro flinched at the thought. "Mom and Uncle Wu didn't take me to the hospital, because it was too risky in case they took a blood test, I had to wait a day for Dr. Julien to come back from vacation before my foot got fixed! Just go. I'll keep everyone in the canteen.

"Wait!" Morro cried and pulled himself out of Lloyd's grip. "Let's just think about this; if they have my blood, it won't matter if I run away or not, they'll still find out about me being a werewolf, and they who knows what they'll do to us!"

"Probably send us to a zoo, or dissect us." Lloyd grimaced at the thought. "So what're we gonna do?" He asked, desperate for a solution. Before Morro could reply, however, Dr. Charles suddenly returned, having forgotten his phone. It only took him a second to take in the scene and realize what the two teenage boys were trying to do...

* * *

Back in the cafeteria, Pixel and Cole were standing in line, waiting to get something to eat. Lloyd had yet to join them so they just assumed Lloyd had gone back to the room to keep Morro company. While Cole tried to ignore how his body became weaker, Pixel was smirking like a clown. This is exactly what she wanted. Morro's blood was going to be tested and the whole world would discover that he wasn't human. If she was right, then it wouldn't be long before Lloyd, Jay, Kai, and Nya were exposed as well.

"I so wish it was Lloyd who was getting that blood test." She grinned.

"I am really starting to dislike you, Pixel," Cole growled.

"Why?" She asked, hoping Cole would confirm that he was at least knew the other's secret.

"You don't wish your friends to get an illness!" He snapped and she flinched at the rage in his tone.

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" She cried as the cafeteria worker handed them their orders. Cole grabbed his, Lloyd, and Morro's as he glared daggers at his human friend.

"I'll take this to Morro and Lloyd." He said and walked away.

"No! I already bumped into the nurse, she's said Morro can't eat until after his blood's been taken." She explained as she chased after him. She did not want those blood tests to be compromised.

"He should be done by now, besides, Lloyd might want his," Cole said and they stepped into the room to find Lloyd standing by the door and Morro sat on the bed with the doctor standing over him.

"Lots of people are scared of needles, Morro, but it's all in the mind." Dr. Clarke explained kindly. He had assumed that Morro was scared o needles and was trying to sneak out of the hospital before the test could be done.

"But I feel fine," Morro said with a reassuring smile. This is just a waste of time.

"Not when it comes to your health and well-being." Dr. Charles said and started to say something else, but Lloyd couldn't hear him. His vision became very blurred and everything seemed to be spinning rapidly. The blonde boy frowned in confusion as he started to sway slightly. He suddenly collapsed to the ground with a loud thud, drifting into unconsciousness...

* * *

"Lloyd? Can you hear me?" A distorted male voice echoed through the darkness as his head pounded like a giant drum. With a pained groan, Lloyd slowly opened his eyes to find a concerned Dr. Clarke leaning over him with a face mask on.

"What's going on?" Lloyd mumbled weakly as his senses started to recover. "What's with the mask?"

"It's precautionary, just in case you and Morro have a virus that's catching, I've asked your friends to wait in the family room until the results come back." He explained as Lloyd looked around the room to find Morro in a bed next to his.

"They've taken both our blood," Morro stated and Lloyd's eyes widened in panic.

"I'm sure it's nothing serious." Dr. Clarke said when he saw the fear on the boys' faces. "Where are your mom and uncle?"

"I tried calling my Mom but got her voicemail instead." Lloyd gulped.

"Right, I'll be back soon, and this time, no wandering off." He warned and walked out of the room, leaving the teens alone. As soon as they were sure he was gone they both shot out of the beds and tried to come up with a plan.

"We have to find that lab." Lloyd insisted.

"And do what?" Asked Morro sarcastically.

"Get the blood samples back, swap them, destroy them, I don't know!"

"Easier said than done, I feel like shit."

"It's getting dark soon, that's why." Lloyd glared before taking a deep breath to calm his nerves. "Look, we've got to do something, or do you want the whole world to know you're a werewolf?"...

* * *

Inside the hospital's family room, Cole was sat in a stiff armchair, glaring at Pixel as she paced around the room with a big smile on her face. This was exactly what she wanted. Soon Lloyd and Morro's secret would be exposed to the public and the whole world would know that Pixel Borg was not crazy and she would be recognized for her discoveries.

"Stop pacing." Cole suddenly snapped.

"I can't, this is going to rock the world." She smiled and Cole saw red. He had known Pixel for years, not as long as Zane, but for a while and he knew that Zane wanted to share the secret with her badly, but their parents had forbidden it. Unfortunately, she was proving their fears true. Right now all she wanted was her beast and nothing was going to stop her.

No matter how many friends she had to sacrifice.

"Who cares! Our best friend's unconscious, and it might be serious!" He growled, reaching his limit.

"Yeah, like the fact he and his cousin are werewolves." She huffed. "These test results will prove it, you'll see."

"And then what?"

"What do you mean, then what?"

"Well, let's just say, for the sake of argument, you are right, which I don't believe, but then what?" He asked and she finally stopped pacing. "Lloyd's supposed to be your friend, what do you think will happen?"

"I... I don't know."

"Well, I do, they'll cart him and Morro off somewhere, lock them up, get loads of tests run on them and we'll never see them again!" He snarled in disgust at the thought. "Is that what you want?"

"Of course not." She cried. She hadn't thought about this. If her theory was true, what would happen to her friends? Would they be locked away and experimented on for the rest of their lives?

"Exactly, so you'd better pray you're wrong about this and stop acting like it's Christmas Day!" Cole hissed.

"I'm not the one hiding secrets from my friends!" Pixel snapped as she resumed pacing. It was then she noticed that Cole was reading one of the books from the stand on the other side of the room. "What are you reading?"

"It's a stupid story." He sighed and revealed the book to be the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. "How can someone physically change and then change back?"

"That's not stupid." She frowned. "For example, moths and butterflies start out as caterpillars, pupate, and become something totally different." She explained. "If we didn't know they were the same, we'd never tell."

"Isn't this story more about the character than the science?"

"Yes, Dr. Jekyll is terrified of the truth coming out, he'll do anything to hide it." Replied Pixel, only to gasp when an idea suddenly hit her. Without another word she took off out of the room and after taking a few seconds to process what just happed, Cole followed her. They arrived at Lloyd and Morro's hospital room just as the doctor did.

Before Dr. Clarke could protest Pixel burst through the door, only to find two empty beds.

"I knew it! They've gone!" She exclaimed.

"Who?" Cole asked from the doorway.

"Lloyd and Morro! They've gone to get their blood tests back!

"What? Why?" Asked Dr. Clarke. "What is going on?"

"You'll see when you get the results!" Pixel said and began dragging the doctor and the teen towards the phlebotomy and pathology lab for the big reveal.

"How do you know they haven't gone home?" Dr. Clarke frowned.

"Because they don't want their blood tested!" She insisted. "I don't want to say anymore because you'll think I'm mad, but they have gone to the lab, and they will try to stop that blood test!"...

* * *

It took Lloyd and Morro a long while for them to finally come up with a decent plan to get their blood back before the doctors found anything suspicious. It had taken some debating but they all agreed that this plan was better than just asking for the blood back. The plan was for them to sneak into to lab to get the blood, destroy it, and escape the hospital before any damage could really be done.

It was such a simple and easy plan.

That is if they could find the lab the blood was being tested in. The two of them had been wandering around for half an hour in vain. The hospital was massive and they had no idea what the technical name for the blood lab was. Time was running out and the doctor must have known they were missing right now. With no other option, they decided to ask for help.

"Excuse me," Lloyd called to a porter that was walking past them. "What's the name of the place where they do blood tests?"

"That'll be phlebotomy and pathology." He smiled.

"Thanks." Lloyd beamed and they took off running towards phlebotomy and pathology. Sadly, when they arrived, they tried to open the doors only to find them locked uptight. They needed one of the hospital ID cards to get in.

"What's the point anymore?" Morro sighed in defeat as he slumped to the floor, his muscles aching as he did. "I hate this, feels like I'm human."

"Oh, stop whining! You don't feel like this because you're human, it's because you're a werewolf." Lloyd glared, trying to think of a way inside.

"I wouldn't feel like this if I had my wolf," Morro stated. "I wouldn't have collapsed in the first place and if I did, we could get in that laboratory."

"Do you know what your problem is?"

"Yeah, there's no moon." He huffed. "That's why I don't have my powers."

"No, you've forgotten your human powers."

"Humans don't have powers." He said slowly, thinking Lloyd had started to go mad.

"That's the point." He smirked. "They have to work at things, they try and don't just give up, but guess what, Morro? We're humans too, and right now we need the human in us to save our wolf bacon!"

"That was a great speech up until the wolf bacon bit." He smirked as he stood up again and they both laughed a little. "So what now? We can't just ring the bell and ask for our blood back." He said, but Lloyd didn't have the answer. "So much for human powers." He sighed when suddenly the door opened and an older man in a hospital lab coat poked his head out and looked at the two boys.

He had noticed them on the security camera outside the door and had gotten curious.

"Yes? Can I help you, boys?" He asked nicely.

"Y-Yeah, our blood was taken here for testing, and me and my cousin here love all things scientific and wanted to see how blood gets tested; Dr. Clark gave us permission." Lloyd quickly lied with a casual grin.

"What? He can't do that, this is a restricted area." The man frowned.

"But it's for our homework assignment, and we've come all this way." Lloyd pleaded, putting on his best puppy dog eyes he could manage. The man continued eyeing them for a few minutes before smiling.

"Look, don't get upset, all right? Come on in." He smiled and let the two teens inside. They followed him down a hallway and into another room. When they entered the lab they saw computers, test tubes, and trays full of small tubes of blood.

"This is amazing, isn't it, Morro?" Lloyd smiled nervously as they kept an eye out for their blood.

"Yeah, amazing," Morro replied. "You've got a really important job."

"Yeah, well... it's actually quite boring." The man sighed.

"Where's our blood?" Lloyd asked, trying not to sound desperate.

"What're your names?"

"Lloyd Garmadon and Morro Ren." He replied and the man typed the names up. He then walked over to one of the racks and picked up two small test tube full of blood and handed it to the teens.

"There's your blood, now just give me a second and I'll show how we test it." He smiled and went over to the computer. Once his back was turned, Lloyd and Morro shared a look before they let go of the tubs and left them to fall to the fall. But their eyes widened in fear and confused when the tube harmlessly bounced off the floor with a clink.

"What?" Lloyd said out loud.

"Oops, don't worry boys." The man smiled as he picked up the tubes. "That's why we put them in thick plastic, I'm always dropping them." He smiled and put the blood back on the rack. Morro looked to Lloyd with panic, hoping the blonde had another plan, but the look on the boy's face told him he didn't. Before they could do anything else, however, the lab doors burst opened and Dr. Clarke walked in with Pixel and Cole following close behind.

"Told you!" Pixel smirked when they saw Lloyd and Morro standing in the middle of the lab, looking guilty as sin.

"What are you two doing here?" Dr. Clarke glared.

"They said that you gave them permission." The man frowned in confusion.

"I did no such thing." The doctor glared, but before he could say anything else there was a beep from the computer and two sheets of yellow paper suddenly slid out of the printer.

"Ah, that'll be your test results." The man smiled.

"Wait! It's done already?!" Morro cried in fear as Dr. Clarke picked up the sheet and started reading it silently. Pixel waited expectedly as the three boys all shared panicked looks, ready to run at any moment.

"Huh? This is most unusual." Dr. Clarke muttered in confusion and the boys broke into a cold sweat as the doctor looked at Lloyd and Morro. "Are you related?"

"They said they're cousins." The man said.

"That might explain the coincidence." Dr. Clarke hummed in thought. "You're both AB Negative, it's extremely rare but apart from that, everything's normal, no virus and no infection." He smiled as two sick teens just sat there, dumbfounded.

"What do you mean normal?" Asked Pixel in shock.

"There's nothing wrong with your friends." The doctor stated.

"But are they full blood tests? Can you tell if they're human?" She asked desperately, she couldn't be wrong, not again.

"Of course it's human!"

"But, ask them why they are even here if they weren't trying to stop the blood test!"

"They wanted to see how blood was tested." The man shrugged.

"We got curious and we cot bored of lying in bed all day as well," Morro replied.

"We're sorry for saying you gave us permission," Lloyd added.

"I think Dr. Jekyll's gone to your head, Pix." Cole sighed. The pale girl just stood there in shock and disbelief. She was so sure that Lloyd was a werewolf and by relation so was Morro, but she was wrong. The only reason she had thought Lloyd was a werewolf in the first place was because of the events during their trip to the Dorcha Islands with him, Jay, and Nya.

If she was wrong about him, she must have been wrong about the others as well

It must have been the smoke and chemicals that made her see Kai and Nya with yellow eyes in the fire. When she thought Lloyd's eyes changed during his street dance that must have been wishful thinking. Embarrassed and ashamed, Pixel ran out of the lab in tears. Quickly excusing himself, Lloyd went after her and found the pale teen sat on the floor of the hallway with her knees tucked into her chest and was sobbing into her knees.

With a heavy sigh, Lloyd slowly walked over to his distressed friend.

"Hey, you ok?" He asked as he sat next to her,

"Don't ask." She sniffed. "You'll only hate me and with good reason."

"I could never hate you, Pixel, you're my best friends in the whole world." He reassured.

"You wouldn't say that if you knew what I'd been saying about you and the others."

"What? That one of us is your beast in the forest?" He grinned and she looked up at him with wide eyes and tears rolling down her cheeks.

"You knew?!"

"'Course I did, we all did." He replied.

"I am such an idiot."

"No, you're not." Lloyd sighed. "Just because you were wrong about me and the others, doesn't mean you're wrong about the beast.

"Doesn't make me less of a fool." She mumbled.

"Do you know what Zane loves about you?" He suddenly said, causing her to blush faintly. "You're a truth hunter; brave and strong, you stick to your guns, no matter what and one day you'll do something amazing, something that'll change the world and we'll be there to say, 'I told you.'" He grinned.

"I'm sorry." She sobbed and wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her teary face into his shoulder. As he listened to her sobbing her heart out, Lloyd couldn't help the pangs of guilt from his.

"Trust me, you've got nothing to be sorry about."...

* * *

After getting a stern lecture about their health, the four teens were finally allowed to go back home. Cole and Pixel's fathers had already come to collect them, leaving Lloyd and Morro sat on a bench, waiting for a cab to come to pick them up. After such a stressful day, all they wanted to do was sleep.

"That was my mom," Lloyd said after he had gotten off the phone. "Apparently, when there's no moon, all trace of the wolf in our blood vanishes."

"So we did all that for no reason?" Morro asked in disbelief.

"I feel really bad for Pixel." He sighed, he was glad she was no longer hunting them, but he knew how badly she wanted her theory to be true.

"She'll get over it." Morro shrugged.

"I don't want to live like this anymore." Lloyd frowned. "Looking over my shoulder all the time, I've got all my friends back now and I want it to stay like that."

"What you gonna do?"

"I'm going to keep my wolf self locked inside for a while and stick to being human and I'd really like it if you could do the same."

"You want me to pretend I'm something I'm not." He glared.

"We do that anyway." Lloyd quickly reminded him. "I'm just sick of the stress, trying to be both at once, and being human does have its advantages." He smiled faintly. "Hanging out, having friends, being normal, it'll make a nice change and it's not like it's forever."

"Lloyd, I get it!" He snapped.

"You do?"

"Yeah." The lone wolf sighed. He really didn't want to do this but knew Lloyd wasn't going to stop badgering him until he agreed.

"Thanks, Morro."...


	9. Party Animals

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During a party with his friends at Pixel's penthouse, Zane comes down with an old and is given wolfsbane, and fails to control his inner wolf...

Lloyd and the gang laughed and joked as they sat in their usual booth in the Yin Yang cafe. Ever since the incident at the hospital, Pixel had been walking on eggshells around her wolfie friends, feeling guilty for chasing and badgering them. Her friends, meanwhile, had been walking on cloud nine. Pixel no longer suspected them of being werewolves, and even though they felt guilty for lying to her, they sadly knew what she would do to them if she knew.

"So, have we decide what time is the party tonight?" Kai suddenly said with a smile and Pixel glared at him, which he just smirked off. "Come on Pix, this is a tradition we're talking about."

"I know, but I just don't see how we can have the party this year, not with the recent developments," Pixel replied as she gave them all a nervous glance.

"What party?" Morro asked.

"Every year my father allows me to throw a party at our penthouse and he invites everyone from school, only this year it's not happening because I'm still the biggest laughing stock at school right now." She explained as she missed the guilty looks the others shared.

"When was this party suppose to be?" Morro asked.

"Tonight." She sighed.

"Look Pix, I know your scared of what people are saying about you, and 'cause of that you're scared of having your own party, but it's just words, it doesn't mean anything, if you haven't been broken at school where you're surrounded by those pricks every day then I think you're strong enough to can handle a party," Nya reassured her friend. Pixel stared at them for a moment, thinking about it, before she smiled and pulled out her phone.

"Hello Father, I need you to start texting the invitations yes, all the people on the list." She smiled.

Within a minute, almost all the teens in the cafe were looking at their cellphones and chatting about the invitations they had gotten. As the pack continued their discussion, the cafe owner, Mr. Burke suddenly walked past them and stapled a piece of paper to a board next to their table. It was a missing poster for a cat. In fact, the board was overflowing with missing posters for pets all over Ninjago, more specifically, for homes close to the forest.

"When did these pets go missing?" Cole asked Burke.

"Last few days." He shrugged and looked to Pixel. "Think it's your beast on the prowl, do you?"

"You know about that?"

"Ah, I hear things."

"Like what?" Morro glared,

"It's just kids gossiping, don't really pay no attention." He shrugged and grabbed a newspaper. "Check out the local paper, front page's got a story about farm animals being attacked, as well as those pets." He explained. They all shared a look before quickly rushing out of the cafe, leaving Burke a tip as they did so.

"Hey, party at Pixel's, did you get one?" Maggie asked Harumi, who was glaring at the pack from the other side of the cafe as they left.

"Why would I go to her stupid party anyway?" She growled before an idea and a sinister smile crept onto her face. "Why don't we go, you and me?"

"I don't think you're invited." Maggie pointed out.

"Come on, who needs an invitation?"...

* * *

Later that evening Nya and the boys went over to Pixel's penthouse to help her get ready for the party. When they got there they saw her in the kitchen preparing the food for the party. Her father was nowhere to been seen and had probably already left to give the teenagers their space. The pack of werewolves began to help her finish the preparations for the party and soon everything was ready. Seconds after they had finished, all the guests began to arrive.

Pixel smiled as friendly as she could and happily greeted them as they started to flood the downstairs of the penthouse.

Lloyd and the others just laughed a little before going to help themselves to the food. As the last of the guests started to get settled in the living room, Pixel was about to shut the door when someone's boot suddenly blocked it. She opened the door again and groaned when she saw it was Maggie and Harumi.

"Harumi, fancy seeing you here, it's a delightful surprise, and Maggie, I haven't seen you in ages." She said with a forced smile. As they walked into the crowd, Pixel went to find the boys and Nya. She found them in the kitchen, glaring daggers at the two cheerleaders who had just arrived.

"I can't stand party crashers." Cole glared as Pixel joined them.

"Do you want me to kick them out?" Nya asked.

"Forget it, I don't wanna make a scene in front of everyone, what about you?" She asked. They all just shrugged before they started to mingle again. Pixel sent the two cheerleaders another a small glare, not remembering inviting them to the party, but her face quickly smoothed into a smile when she saw Zane walking over to her. The poor boy looked a little worse for wear, with even paler skin and a redding nose.

"Are you ok?" She asked.

"Yeah... just checking a cold." He replied, his voice sounding stuffy and tired, and noticed the way Pixel shifted nervously. "What's wrong on?"

"C-Can we talk?" She asked and before he could say anything, she had grabbed his wrist and dragged him up the stairs where there were fewer people and space for them to talk.

"Pixel, is everything alright?"

"Don't get mad, but I thought we might spend a night in the forest." She suggested and Zane had to hold in an irritated sigh. He knew Pixel wasn't investigating them anymore, but he also knew she wasn't going to stop looking for her beast. However, he had hoped that she might have let the dust before she went monster hunting again.

"Why?"

"The beast is back, Zane and I know where I can find it." She explained. "Pets are missing, farm animals have been attacked-"

"Since when?"

"Since a few days ago; this is our best chance to see it, Zane and I've worked out its movements!" She smiled and Zane knew he had to throw her off course.

"But if it's alive, and attacking animals, what makes you think it's safe for us?" He asked. "Remember what happened last time? Have you thought about this?"

"Yes, I have." She promised. "If we'd have stuck together and looked out for each other we'd have been fine; it's out there, right now!"

"Look, I know how important this is to you-"

"You have no idea!" She snapped. "Everyone thinks I'm the town weirdo!"

"No, they don't."

"Yes, they do!" She insisted and sighed. "Look, my father took me to see a doctor and they talked about medication, I've got to see a psychiatrist."

"What? Why?!"

"Because of what I said about you!" She exclaimed. "Look, I need to know if there's something out there, I need to know I'm not going completely crazy."

"You're not, Pixel," Zane muttered, unable to look her in the eye.

"Don't patronize me! I told my father nearly all my friends were werewolves!" She bellowed. "Give me one good reason why that makes me sane!"

"Because... Because the beast IS real and we ARE going to find it; I promise." He stated firmly as he pulled his distressed friend into a comforting embrace. They stood there, just hugging in silence, for about a minute before Pixel pulled away.

"You won't tell the others about the psychiatrist, will you?" She pleaded and with a heavy sigh, he nodded and they returned to the party...

* * *

Nya and Jay laughed and happily drank their drinks as they enjoyed the party. The others had decided to go and see if there was something to do, leaving the two teens alone. No one had seen where Pixel and Zane had disappeared to. At the other end of the room, Harumi couldn't stop glaring at them, annoyed that no one at the party seemed to notice her but yet those two were having a good time. She watched as Nya took off her new necklace and gave it to Jay so he could have a proper look at it.

The lead cheerleader smirked as she stood up and went over to them, ready to have a laugh.

"Hey, Nya, why don't you show us your necklace?" She laughed loudly, grabbing everyone's attention. Before anyone could react, she snatched the locket from the freckled boy. "It's beautiful." She smiled before Nya grabbed it back.

"What's your problem?" Jay glared.

"My bottle is just about empty." She smirked as she held up one of the plastic cups of punch Pixel had laid out. Harumi suddenly shoved the bottle forward and the juice flew out and all over Nya's front. The raven-haired girl gasped as she dropped her locket and dashed into the closest bathroom. Jay sent Harumi a withering glare before running to check on his crush. While Jay was doing that, Cole and Morro were trying to stop Kai from murdering Harumi.

They had just managed to calm him down when Zane came over to them, Pixel nowhere in sight, sneezing loudly.

"Hey Zane, what's wrong with Pix?" Lloyd asked, flinching slightly when he saw that Zane looked worse than before.

"We're going beast-hunting soon." He replied, not wanting to sugar coat it.

"What?" Cole frowned.

"No way!" Kai glared.

"Guys, she needs this."

"And I need to chill in front of the TV and forget about one of your so-called friends nearly exposing our secret!" Morro snapped.

"This is important!"

"Why? What's happened?" Asked Lloyd and Zane paused, remembering his promise.

"She really needs us now, OK?" He pleaded. "She needs to know we're on her side."

"Fine!" Cole sighed and the others reluctantly nodded in agreement.

"Can we get something to eat? I'm starving!" Kai suddenly begged, breaking the awkward silence. They all grabbed some burgers and stood on the balcony while the rest of the party carried on inside. They all stood there, enjoying the view when suddenly Morro cleared his throat.

"So why does Pixel want to go monster hunting so soon after we just debunked her last theory?" He asked and they all turned to Zane.

"She thinks the beast is the one taking all those missing pets and some nearby farmers and butchers have reported a wild animal stealing their produce." He explained and sighed. "I... I think that wild werewolf has returned."

"I haven't smelt or sensed anything when I've been up there." Lloyd frowned.

"Me neither." Zane agreed.

"So she's wrong?" Kai asked.

"Maybe." Cole shrugged.

"So let's say it is the wild werewolf," Morro started. "So it lives in the forest, sometimes comes foraging on your territory, and can mask its own scent; how does seeing it help Pixel?"

"Her father thinks she's crazy, and so is she," Zane mumbled and the others, minus Morro, looked down at that. "She needs to know it's real and we're going to help her, even if it means one of us transforming to do it."

"What?!" The others cried, looking at Zane as if he had suddenly grown two heads.

"What if that wild werewolf is out there and attacks us again?" Cole asked.

"We defend ourselves!"

"As wolves? In front of Pixel?!" Kai cried.

"Well... maybe it's time they found out." He muttered.

"Now look who's the crazy one?" Morro snarled, unable to believe they were even having this discussion.

"I can't keep lying to her! It's killing me!"

"You'll feel a lot worse when she tells the rest of the world!" Lloyd exclaimed.

"Pixel wouldn't do that!"

"How do you know?" Asked Cole. "What if she can't handle it or we fall out with her?"

"I'll take that risk!"

"But this is about all of us!" Kai shouted. "Me, your dad, us, and all werewolves!"

"Pixel will understand that."

"Don't use friendship as an excuse, it's about you feeling guilty." Lloyd glared. "We get it, Zane, Pixel's our friend too but we CAN'T tell, like Kia said, this isn't just about us."

"No! It's about me living truthfully!" Zane snapped. He was sick of all the lies and the constant fear he felt when around humans.

"But we can't!" Morro growled.

"It's why werewolves have kept hidden for so many years -even the wild ones- because human beings wiped most of us out." Cole reminded them when suddenly the sliding door to the balcony opened and a confused Pixel stepped out.

"Am I interrupting something?" She asked cautiously, sensing the heavy tension in the cold air.

"No, of course not." Zane smiled, choosing to ignore the glares the others sent his way.

"I just wanted to give you this." She said and handed Zane a tin with small very light lime green pills inside. "It's the only cold remedy I could find; I believe it's called aconite, supposed to be a homeopathic remedy, basically just sugar pills covered in a plant extract." She explained as Zane thanked her before popping a pill into his mouth, flinching at the taste. "Right, if that doesn't work, pop another one, can't do any harm." She smiled and went back to the party.

"You can't tell her, Zane," Kai ordered once they were sure she was gone. "This is our secret too."

"I'm sorry, guys, but I can't live like this anymore," Zane muttered when, much to the others horror, his icy blue eyes suddenly turned yellow. "If the time's right I'll do what I have to."

"Stop it!" Lloyd cried as the ill werewolf to a deep sniff.

"Smell that meat?" He drooled as his wild gaze snapped toward the oblivious party.

"ZANE NO!" Morro screamed as he and Cole restrained Zane before he could get back inside. They needed to hide him until he calmed down. Somewhere none of the guests could walk in. Lloyd looked around and pointed to a small bathroom a few feet from the balcony door. It was their only option. Unfortunately, they would have to drag him through the party to get to the bathroom.

"I NEED MEAT!" Zane screeched as Kai threw his jacket over his head to hide his eyes and Cole and Morro started dragging him through the party. "LET ME GO!" He grunted and struggled, catching peoples' attention.

"You need the bathroom!" Cole grunted as Kai opened the bathroom door for them.

"I need MEAT!" He roared as they finally pushed him into a bathroom. Kai and Morro quickly shut the door before Cole locked himself and Zane in. By now a crowd of guests had gathered around, preventing Lloyd, Jay, and Nya from helping.

"What's happening?!" Pixel cried as she made her way out of the crowd and towards the door, only to have her way blocked by Kai and Morro

"Zane's sick!" Kai exclaimed as he started sweating bullets.

"I'm not sick, I'm hungry!" He snarled from behind the as he tried to wrestle out of Cole's grip. Ripping the jacket of the paler teen, Cole suddenly grabbed Zane's head and forced him to look into a nearby mirror.

"Look at yourself Zane!" He growled and Zane's eyes widened when he saw nearly all the veins in his body had turned black and his eyes were a terrifying gold. "Do you really want Pixel to see you like this?" Cole asked as he slowly let his friend go, sensing him calming down. Hearing the muffled shouts and struggling, Pixel pushed her way past Kai and Morro and knocked on the bathroom door.

"Zane?"

"I-I'll be out in a minute! I'm just feeling a bit weird." Zane gulped, finally regaining his senses. Thinking he wanted to be alone, Pixel walked away with the two boys as they urged the crowd to move on and continue with the party, leaving Cole and Zane alone in the bathroom.

"Turn your wolf off," Cole ordered once they were alone.

"This isn't me." He whimpered in fear. For the first time in his life, he wasn't in control of his wolf.

"You're not doing this?"

"No, I swear." He insisted, only to suddenly gasp in realization. "The pill, it happened after I took the pill Pixel gave me for my cold."

"So you're like having an allergic reaction?" Cole frowned when suddenly someone started knocking on the door, scaring them both to death. Taking a quick sniff, ole groaned when he smelt Pixel's perfume.

"Zane, open the door." She said firmly, jiggling the door handle impatiently. Zane started to panic. He was trapped at a party full of humans and thanks to Pixel trying to help him, he was stuck on the tipping point of transforming into his wolf with no way to turn it off.

"Stay here and lock the door behind me," Cole ordered before he stepped out and Zane slammed the door shut, locking it. "He's in a bad way." He quickly said to a concerned Pixel. "Temperature's through the roof and he's being sick!" He exclaimed as Zane loudly pretended to throw up.

"I'll call Dr. Julien to collect him." She sighed and walked off. Once she was gone, Nya ran over to him and they both went back into the bathroom where he and Zane shared their pill theory with her. Nya quickly pulled out her phone and went onto the internet.

"Alright, this says Aconite is also known as wolfsbane." She read off her phone. "Wolfsbane is the commonly known cure or weapon against the fantastical creatures known as werewolves and in folklore, consuming wolfsbane would turn people into werewolves." She sighed. They knew a human couldn't be turned into a werewolf, so it must only bring out the wolf in tame werewolves.

"Great, we know why this happened, now how do we undo it?" Cole asked as Zane slowly began to lose it again.

"The only antidote to wolfsbane I can find is thistle root." Replied Nya. "Thistle root is said to quiet the werewolf."

"Where the fuck are we supposed to find thistle root at this time?" Cole snapped, pushing Zane way from the locked door.

"There are tons of thistle bushes on the outskirts of the forest, I'll text Kai and ask him to grab some." She reassured as she sent a text to her brother, who texted back almost immediately, saying he was going. "Now we just have to wait." She smiled, only to gasp when they looked around to find the bathroom door wide open and Zane was nowhere to be seen...

* * *

Quickly sneaking out while Cole and Nya were trying to figure out how to get some thistle root, Zane started slowly making his way towards the kitchen where he could smell freshly cooked burger meat sizzling. He was wearing a large hoodie and sunglasses to try and hide his eyes and veins. Before he could make it to the kitchen, however, Chad suddenly appeared and pulled the sick werewolf into the crowded living room, where everyone was watching.

Just then Nya and Cole ran out but they were too late.

They could only watch in horror as their friend was thrown to the wolves.

"Oh come on, I knew you were weird but this is fucking stupid." Harumi laughed cruelly as a few of her friends bent down to pull off the hoodie and sunglasses. Zane closed his eyes tightly as he waited for the inevitable. Everyone suddenly screamed and for a split second, Zane thought to was because they saw his condition and knew he wasn't human, that is, until he was suddenly splashed with cold juice and water, along with the rest of the students.

He fearfully opened his eyes and was shocked but relieved when he saw that the hoodie and sunglasses were still on, hiding him.

Lloyd and Jay were leaning over the upstairs balcony above him and the crowd with bowls of punch in their hands. They quickly ducked behind the wall before anyone else could notice them. It only took Zane a few seconds to work out what had happened.

"What the fuck!" Harumi screamed as she was soaked from head to toe. Everyone who wasn't soaked just stood there laughing at her and the other students. As everyone was distracted, Cole quickly picked up Zane and snuck back to the bathroom. As Pixel and Nya got everyone settled and cleaned up the mess Harumi sulked in the corner as she was still dripping wet. As she looked around miserably she suddenly noticed Nya's necklace on the kitchen counter by some towels.

The female werewolf must not have put it back on.

Harumi wasn't lying when she said it was a beautiful necklace. After making sure that no one was watching she crept over and snatched the locket. Making sure that the locket was secured in her pocket, the lead cheerleader started to make her way towards the front door, only to find a very angry Morro Ren standing in her way.

"Give it back." The lone wolf glared.

"Give what back?" She nervously asked.

"You know what I'm talking about." He hissed as he held out his hand. Harumi snarled furiously before pulling out the locket and dropped it into the bad boy's waiting hand.

"Get out of my way, I've got better things to do with my time." She huffed as she pushed past him.

"Thief." He spat, causing the diva to stop and turn back to him.

"Get over it, it's your word against mine and no one is gonna believe you; hey, some people might even think that you took it." She laughed before leaving, making sure to slam the door on her way out...

* * *

Thankfully the rest of the night was incident-free. About half an hour after Lloyd and Jay had given half the guests an unusual bath, Kai had finally returned with the thistle root for Zane, which Cole and Nya practically had to force down the pale teen's throat, causing his eyes and veins to return to normal. Pixel had been unable to reach Dr. Julien but Zane assured her that he was fine now and the party continued. After the party had ended and all the other guests went home, Lloyd and the others were sat in Pixel's now messy living room, trying to relax.

After finding out from Morro that Harumi had tried to steal her necklace, Nya wanted to go confront her, but Morro stopped her.

"Harumi's got some nerve taking this." The female werewolf frowned as she looked at the necklace around her neck.

"Should we tell someone?" Jay asked but Morro shook his head.

"There's no point like she said, it's my word against hers."

"Thanks for getting it." Nya smiled and he just shrugged.

"So, why were you suddenly so ill?" Pixel asked Zane, who froze, trying to think of an excuse.

"I think I just didn't have the best reaction to that pill." He replied.

"I feel terrible now!" Pixel cried. First, she accuses most of her friends of being werewolves and now she basically poisons her best friend.

"You didn't know," Lloyd reassured.

"Hey Pix, I'm gonna get a refill, you wanna come?" Nya offered and the two girls quickly went into the kitchen, leaving the boys alone.

"I can still taste the thistle root." Zane gagged, causing them all to burst out laughing.

"Still keen to spill the beans?" Asked Kai.

"No, not now." He replied with a heavy sigh. "Pixel's happy."

"Are you?" Jay asked, concern for his friend clear on his face.

"Yeah, it's just really good to be normal again." He smiled weakly. "Doing normal, gossipy things, with normal people.

"There's nothing normal about us Zane, that includes Pixel," Cole smirked, causing them all to burst into another fit of laughter and for a brief second, Zane felt everything was right in his world again...


	10. His Inner Prisoner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Morro agrees to spend the full moon in the den with Jay at his parents' junkyard...

Morro groaned in frustration as Jay led him into his own private space in the junkyard. There was another full moon in two nights and, much to own regret, he had agreed to spend to with Jay this time. To help him adjust to the change of scenery, Morro had agreed to spend tonight and tomorrow night at Jay's. The only reason he was doing this was that Kai and Nya's parents were coming home for the full moon, having missed their daughter's first transformation.

They were spending it at Dr. Julien's house with the boys.

Morro would have been too but he got the feeling Ray and Maya didn't like him that much. They were always staring at him and muttering things to each other that he couldn't hear. When he brought this up with Kai and Nya, they just shrugged it off, saying their parents were just protective and they hadn't had the chance to got to know him. Nya was spending the full moon with Lloyd and his family. Morro didn't feel comfortable being locked in a small space during a full moon with four other werewolves so that just left Jay's place.

"You ready for the practice run?" Jay asked with a reassuring smile.

"No." Morro grumbled.

"It's not as bad as you think."

"Do you have to lock me in?"

"Well... Yeah!" Jay sighed. "If you can't cope as a human, you're never going to cope as a wolf."

"I hate this! I'll get claustrophobia."

"I thought that when it was my first night here, but I didn't," Jay reassured. "All werewolves do this, once you do it once-"

"I'll be tame." Morro snapped.

"Is that what you think I am? What the others are?" Jay asked, hurt evident in his voice. "Tame?"

"No! That's not... I mean..."

"Look Morro, if you really think you can't cope in here then go to Zane's, we can't force you to come here but you NEED to spend the full moon at with Lloyd's, Zane's, or my place, it's the rules."

"I guess so." Morro sighed as Jay placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"It's your choice." He said. "Lone wolf or pack?"...

* * *

The next day at school, the others asked Morro what he was going to do during the full moon. Jay had told them about his doubts and they were making it clear that running around unsupervised was not an option while he was on their territory, lone wolf or not. When Nya asked about where he told his foster parents where he'd be staying he said they were out of town that night. Mr. Dobson's father was not well so he and his wife were going to stay with him for a couple of days.

It had already been arranged between Morro's social worker and Jay's parents.

Normal a social worker didn't tell Morro what he can and can't do, but the Walkers were expecting him now. Morro was dreading the idea of locking himself away during a full moon, and all because the forest was so close to the city. He couldn't understand why werewolves chose to live in one of the largest cities in the world, full of humans.

"Living near humans is always a risk," Zane said when Morro asked them about it.

"Yeah, that's why we keep our heads down and Lloyd, Zane, and Jay live on the outskirts of the city," Cole explained.

"It's all about responsibility," Kai added. "Being a werewolf affects everything."

"We're not saying live like a hermit." Nya quickly said when she saw the disappointed look on Morro's face. "It's about seeming normal."

"A werewolf can live and work wherever they like." Jay smiled, thinking about how no one in their pack lived in the same type of house.

"You mean as long as they have a dungeon in the cellar," Morro grumbled.

"It's not a dungeon." Lloyd glared.

"It's a precaution." Cole quickly broke the tension. "Think of it as a rite of passage."

"Like an initiation into our pack, because deep down, that's what you really want, to be in a pack." Jay smiled warmly.

"All werewolves do." Kai nodded. "It's greater than the instinct to be free and there's no freedom without responsibility."

"Not in the human world anyway," Morro mumbled and Lloyd sighed.

"Look, the full moon's not till tomorrow." He said. "If you don't want to sleep at Jay's tonight-"

"Lloyd!" The others cried.

"It's his choice." Lloyd glared. He didn't want to risk it either but Morro had made great progress so far and he didn't want to push him into something he wasn't ok with yet. It would be like forcing Nya to spend the full moon with the boys.

"It's OK," Morro said. "I need to learn, I won't let you down."

"We never thought you would." Nya smiled. Before anyone could say anything else, however, the bell suddenly rang and the students began to move to their morning lessons. The pack said their goodbyes and went their separate ways, with Morro going alone. Nya looked back for a moment and frowned when she saw Morro suddenly strike up a conversation with Chad and his girlfriend Maggie. She was too far away to hear what they were saying.

Just then, much to her shock, Morro and Chad shook hands before the jock suddenly handed the lone wolf a small stack of cash before all three of them walked away out of view.

Nya glared and promised herself that she would get to the bottom of this...

* * *

Morro smiled, feeling very proud of himself, as he walked alone into a secluded part of the forest. It had been another glorious business exchange and he chuckled as he felt the banknotes in his pocket. He should have thought of this plan years ago. Before he even graduated high school he'd have enough money to make Harumi, Dareth, Pixel, and Zane's fortune combined look like a third grader's lunch money. Giggling at that thought, Morro finally reached his destination.

To anyone else, it just looked like another part of the forest, surrounded by tall trees and covered in recently fallen amber leaves.

Morro smiled as he quickly glanced around to make sure he was alone before brushing the wet leaves out of the way to reveal a large stone slab in the ground. Grunting at the effort, Morro managed to push the salad off, uncovering dozens of packages. He carefully picked up two of them and opened them. Inside the packages were an expensive and fancy suit and dress with accessories to match. The midnight blue dress covered just one shoulder, leaving the other uncovered and it flew down into a beautiful halter neckline.

It was a loose fit that covered up a woman's breasts, but it did so without making it look awkward or messy.

It was a sleeveless dress. The dress' waist was broad and a small, white, elegant belt helped accentuate the waist without being too much. Below the waist, the dress widened and had multiple symmetric layers from top to bottom. The dress reached to just above the ankles and was the same length all around. To go with the dress was a pair of silver ballerina flats. To top it all off there was also a silver ornate necklace and several lavish bracelets.

Along with the fancy dress was an equally fancy suit.

There was a clean, white shirt with a long black elegant tie. On top of the shirt was a black stylish vest with four shiny buttons, it had a deep v-line, which caused the vest to remain hidden when the suit's jacket is buttoned up. The jacket had an intricate, but subtle plaid pattern, giving the suit a stylish casual look, and was dark grey in color. The jacket was the same length all around. It had vents at either side, there were two pockets on either side and there was a breast pocket that contained a stylish pocket square.

There were also a pair of black pants that copied the style of the jacket, and they perfectly complemented the shoes.

Alongside the suit was a sharp pair of plain black toe derbies. To top it all off there a luxurious belt, which could be accompanied by a gold watch and a pair of silky white gloves. Only a handful of the popular kids ever asked him for this stuff because they were the only ones who knew. No one else could know about this. Morro carefully sealed the packages back up as he lifted the large slab back into place and recovered it with the leaves.

Once he was certain his stash was secure and well-hidden again.

Morro stuffed the packages into his backpack and stood up to leave.

"What are you doing?" A voice suddenly asked from behind him. Jumping nearly ten feet in the air, Morro flipped around with a snarl, only to relax when he saw it was just Nya, Kai, and Cole. They had tracked him down and Nya had brought her brother and friend for backup.

"What are YOU doing?" He returned, backing away slightly.

"What's in the hole Morro?" Kai glared.

"None of your business!" Morro hissed, only to cry out when Cole suddenly pulled the bag off his back and pulled out the packages, throwing them to the siblings before Morro could take them back. They quickly opened them and gasped when they saw the clothes.

"These are part of Opal Essence's newest collection!" Nya exclaimed.

"How the fuck can you afford these?" Kai asked, but Morro refused to meet his gaze.

"Oh my God!" Cole gasped. "You stole these didn't you?!"

"No!" He snapped. "Someone else did! I saw them raid a truck of the stuff about a week ago and then I took it from them, I thought it could get me some cash."

"We can't just help ourselves!" Nya growled.

"Why not?" Morro groaned. "Because we're supposed to be keeping our heads down? Being responsible?"

"You should go to the police," Kai said.

"Taking from thieves isn't really stealing, is it?" Morro asked hopefully. "In fact, we're just punishing them for doing it in the first place and you can't get more responsible than that."

"You can't do this!"

"'Course I can." He shrugged. "I just nip out after school and fill my bag."

"Unless you get caught by a teacher or the thieves coming back for their stuff!" Cole warned.

"Do you remember what you said? Werewolves have limited options." Morro sighed before huffing. "You're all right, with your big old houses and your money."

"We aren't all as rich as you think." Kai glared.

"I'm a werewolf in the care system." He reminded them. "I have to think about my future and if my first step is making money out of teenage fashion victims, that is fine by me."

"Fine." Nya spat. "But when it all goes wrong, don't expect us to sort out your mess." She stated as she and Kai threw the packages back to him before they and Cole took off back to the city, leaving Morro alone in the forest with his goods and thoughts...

* * *

The next day, Morro kept his head down at school. He would never admit to the others but he was ashamed of his actions. He knew it was wrong to handle stolen goods and sell them like he was doing but it was too late to stop now. He was certain that Nya, Kai, and Cole had told the others and he was proved right when he walked into his French class and saw Lloyd glaring at him from the other side of the room. Not meeting the blonde teen's eyes, Morro silently took his seat at the deck closet to the door and waited for the teacher.

Within a few minutes, the teacher arrived with her last few students and, much to everyone's surprise, the principal.

The principal eyed each student carefully as they all fidgeted nervously in their seats.

"Right, before we get started, we've had a call from the police; they have reason to believe that someone is selling stolen property on school premises." The teacher explained and Morro felt his stomach drop.

"Specifically, Opal Essence designer clothing." The principal added.

"Does anyone in this class know anything about it?" The teacher asked and for once she had complete and utter silence. "All right, the principal will talk to you each individually outside, the rest of you, open your textbooks to page 47." She sighed.

"Harumi Jade, I will speak to you first." The principal stated and an irritated Harumi followed him out into the hallway. At this point, Morro was sweating bullets, Harumi was one of his most common customers and she had literally no reason not to tell the police it was him. Using his enhanced hearing, Morro listened in, hoping to us what she was saying to his advantage.

"Why are you starting with me? I haven't done anything." Harumi snapped as she leaned against the wall.

"I'll decide that." The principal frowned. "I just want to know where you got these items from." He said and pointed to the Opal Essence high heels, necklace, and jacket she was currently wearing. Morro gulped, there was no way Harumi was going to take the fall for this. She was unfazed by this, however.

"Why, sir? Do you want some? They'd never go with your eyes." She smirked. "I got them by mail order."

"So you have a receipt or some paperwork?"

"Doubt it, my Mom made me tidy my room and I threw out all the packaging." She shrugged. "I bet you don't have receipts for what you're wearing today, sir, but that doesn't mean it's stolen." She huffed and he froze a little at that. "Do you have proof there ARE stolen goods in school?"

"The police, they believe-"

"Teenagers love starting rumors and watching the teachers run round in circles." She chuckled. "The fact is that there's no proof there are any stolen goods in school and you can't prove I didn't buy those legitimately, and as much as I hate to remind you, I'm missing French." She smirked. The principal tightened his lips in rage as he wracked his brain trying to poke holes in her story. But he couldn't find any. Her family was rich enough to buy the Opal Essence company, not just the stock, and her parents were inattentive enough to not notice if their daughter had spent a couple hundred on a jacket.

"Go! Now!" He snapped. She simply smiled sweetly as she walked back into class and took her seat, Morro staring at her in shock the entire time...

* * *

Immediately after their French class, Morro ignored Lloyd and ran off to find Harumi. After nearly five minutes he finally found her hiding behind the back of the school, smoking a cigarette. Ignoring the smoke irritating his nose, Morro casually walked over to her. Hearing someone approaching, Harumi quickly hid the cigarette behind her back and turned to face him. When she saw it was just Morro she glared and took another puff of her cigarette.

"If you're selling more stuff, forget it." She said coldly.

"I've come to say thanks for not telling them it was me." He replied in the same tone.

"Whatever." She rolled her eyes until a thought suddenly came to her. "Exactly how grateful are you?" She asked with a sinister smirk. "Because I've still got that hairdresser's appointment booked and I'm saving for new shoes."

"You want your money back?"

"And I still keep the stuff."

"No way!"

"I thought you were grateful?" She glared. "I thought you wanted to make sure that no-one ever accidentally said anything, especially to the principal." She smirked as his face went pale. "Pleasure doing business with you." She said before walking away. Morro felt like slapping himself for getting into this mess. He turned to leave, only to jump when he saw Nya standing there, a frown on her face and her arms crossed.

"Happy now?" She asked.

"Not really." He sighed in defeat.

"What are you going to do?"

"I need to get rid of that gear."

"Morro, you can't, not tonight!"

"I've got hours until moonrise, just cover for me with Jay."

"No, we can't risk it." She glared. "You'll need to get all those clothes, find some way to get rid of them, and get to Jay's place in the next three hours!"

"Well, what do you suggest?"...

* * *

"I can't believe we agreed to do this." Kai groaned as he and Cole begrudgingly trudged through the dark forest. The sun was now setting, filling the sky with its beautiful oranges and casting dark shadows through the trees. After her discussion with Morro asked her brother and Cole to go to Morro's stash and hide all the clothes in Cole's car until they could be dealt with in the morning.

"You ever tried saying no to Nya?" Cole asked and Kai winced, remember the only tie he was foolish enough to do that.

"Point taken." He sighed as they reached the hiding spot. After removing the slab they started stuffing the dozens of packages into their bags. "Still, it's Morro mess, he should be the one to clean it up."

"Can we just get this over with, these things are nothing but trouble." Cole glared as he held up a package like it was toxic.

"It's just a couple of dresses, what could go wrong?" Kai smiled when suddenly they heard the sound of leaves crumpling and sticks snapping behind them. They quickly turned around and their eyes widened when they saw just over half a dozen police officers surrounding them.

"Police! Stop where you are!" An officer shouted.

"RUN!" Cole screamed and they both took off running in opposite directions. Unfortunately, even with their enhanced speed being made more powerful by the full moon, it did nothing to help them as the police had already completely surrounded them and three of them tackled both teens to the forest ground. They grunted as one of the cops handcuffed their hands behind their backs and dragged them to their feet. Kai and Cole shared a terrified look as they were forced to walk back towards the city...

* * *

Completely oblivious to their son's predicament, Ray and Maya were at their apartment with Nya, packing their bags for their night at Lloyd's house. Since Kai was running late, Maya had already packed his bag for when he came to collect it. Although it was starting to get late and if Kai didn't hurry he would have to spend the night at Zane's without any clean clothes or his toothbrush.

As she was packing the last of her things, Nya suddenly got a message from Jay.

**FABULOUS THUNDER- _Think this will be enough for the night?_**

Attached to the message was a picture of Jay's den with two bowls overflowing with meat his parents had bought for him and Morro.

**AQUA DRAGON- _Given the lack of meat in Morro's diet, probably not. LOL_**

She chuckled to herself and the mention of Morro made her think of her brother and Cole. They should have been back by now. They were only supposed to get the clothes and leave them in Cole's car until tomorrow. It was such a simple job that it shouldn't have taken them more than half an hour, but they had been gone for nearly an hour now.

Before she could think of what was keeping them, someone started loudly knocking on the door to their apartment.

"I'll get it." She called as she ran for the door.

"If it's Kai, tell him to hurry up!" Maya called from the kitchen, thinking her son might have forgotten his key. Nya smiled and opened the door, only to gasp when she saw a very angry looking Lou Brookstone standing in the doorway. Before she could say anything, however, he pushed past her and stormed over to her father. That's when Nya knew something was wrong. Lou was usually a well-mannered gentleman. He wouldn't have pushed past her so rudely if it wasn't urgent.

"Hi, Twinkletoes, what's up?" Ray smirked as Lou mumbled in annoyance. The head of the Smith family knew that nickname irritated Lou more than he'd ever admitted and that's why he kept calling him that.

"It's Cole and Kai." The dancer replied with a stern expression.

"What's going on?" Ray asked, all humor suddenly gone from his voice.

"They've both been arrested." He glared. "For handling stolen property."...

* * *

"Oh fuck! Oh, Fuck! OH FUCK!" Kai screamed as he paced up and down the small holding cell he shared with Cole. After they had been arrested the Police Commissioner had forced them in here until their parents could come and get them. While Kai paced around, Cole sat on the thin metal bench thinking about what his father would say when he found out his son had been wrongly imprisoned. This was all Morro's fault. If he hadn't been selling those clothes none of this would be happening.

It should have been him in this cell, not them.

It was him who stole the clothes from the original thieves and when he was going to get caught he managed to manipulate Nya into making them hide his gear in Cole's car and now they were sitting in a cell. On the night of a full moon.

"Kai! Knock it off already!" Cole snapped.

"We're going to be stuck in here all night!" The spiky-haired teen whimpered, still pacing. "We'll be trapped in this cage during the full moon, the walls will close in and... and..." He panted and tried to gasp for breath. It was then Cole realized he was having a panic attack. Kai had never done well in cramped spaces, even before his first transformation, which is why he always spent the full moon at Zane's. There he could run free and not locked away like Lloyd or Jay.

Not missing a beat, the larger teen shot up and grabbed Kai's shoulders, forcing him to look into his green eyes.

"Kai, calm down, our parents are gonna get us out of here and then ground us for ten years, and then we are gonna get back at Morro for getting us into this mess in the first place," Cole stated in a calm tone.

"B-But... what if-" Kai stuttered, only to be cut off when Cole suddenly pulled him into a tight embrace.

"Shh, it's going to be ok, I promise." He soothed as he gently rubbed circles into Kai's back. Kai relaxed a little and his gaze turned to the small cell window and into the evening sky, hoping Cole would be right...

* * *

"Unbelievable stupidity!" Ray roared at his daughter as they all sped down the road in Lou's car towards the police station. They had only an hour and a half before the moon rose so they had to get Kai and Cole out of the police station and out of the forest as quickly as possible. While they were driving, Nya had to tell the adults everything. About Morro selling the stolen clothes and how she convinced Kai and Cole to help him hide them instead of going to the police.

"You should have called the police! Not encourage my son to help your brother and that hoodlum hide stolen property!" Lou shouted, finally pulling up to the police station.

"We'll deal with that in a minute, first, we need to get those boys out of here and we don't have long to do it!" Maya exclaimed as they ran inside and furiously rang the bell on the front desk until an officer appeared.

"Hello, we're here to pick up Cole Brookstone and Kai Smith," Ray said nervously looking at the clock.

"Good thing you turned up, we would have had to keep them both all night." The officer chuckled and grabbed his radio. "Their parents are here." He said and was answered by what sounded like static to the anxious parents. "Right, take a seat and the Commissioner will be with you as soon as he's ready." He smiled and the three adults and teenage girl reluctantly took a seat.

Ten minutes later the Commissioner took Ray and Lou and lead them to the interrogation room where Cole and Kai were waiting.

As soon as the two boys saw the look in their fathers' eyes, they looked down at their feet in shame. They were furious for their sons getting arrested, on a full moon of all days.

"We're sorry," Kai muttered.

"You will be, young man," Ray growled as he and Lou took their seats.

"Interview with Cole Brookstone and Kai Smith, commencing 18:20 on Monday 19th October." The Commissioner said out loud for the recorder as he sat down. Meanwhile, while she was waiting for her husband and son, Maya decided it was best to have a talk with Nya. While she understood that she was just trying to help a friend, she had hoped her daughter had more sense than to knowingly handle stolen goods and not report it.

Now they were all in danger of being exposed by this one action.

"You know we can never draw attention to ourselves." She quietly told the teen.

"I know, we shouldn't have done it." She sighed, before glaring. "But if it was left to you, we'd never do anything; we'd go nowhere, do nothing, get boring jobs, and live boring lives."

"We are trying to keep you safe."

"There's more to life than being safe!" She exclaimed, causing the officer at the desk to look up at them for a brief moment before returning to his paperwork.

"Let's see if you're still saying that at moonrise." Maya glared and Nya nervously glanced at the clock. They had less than an hour now. Inside the interrogation room, the Commissioner was trying to get the boys to identify the ones who had originally stolen the clothes before Morro had taken them, but the kids weren't budging in the slightest.

"We didn't see anyone there." Kai insisted.

"Yeah, we thought the stuff was abandoned," Cole added.

"Look, Commissioner." Ray started. "They're just stupid teenagers who just found what they thought was lost property."

"Yes, they simply made a stupid decision which I think they both now deeply regret," Lou said coldly. "They both clearly weren't involved in the actual robbery, and I can assure you Cole will be punished for what he's done." He glared at his son.

"As will Kai." Ray agreed. "So if we could just-"

"It's not that simple, Mr. Brookstone and Mr. Smith." The Commissioner stated. "Your sons helped themselves to something that wasn't theirs and the clothes had been hidden in a spot in the forest that it seems only your sons knew the location of, so even if they simply stumbled across the stash, I'm afraid there's only one thing to do." He explained and the fathers went pale.

"But you can't, they're just kids!" Ray exclaimed.

"Cole and Kai are ready to go back to their cells." The Commissioner said to the officer in the room, who nodded as she grabbed their arms and dragged both boys away, despite Ray and Lou's protects. "We're not going to charge them with anything." The Commissioner quickly reassured.

"Wonderful! Let's sign the paperwork and we'll get out of your hair." Lou hopefully smiled.

"Not so fast, sir." The Commissioner said. "Lads with a bad attitude, they need to learn to respect authority; of course, I'll make sure they learn their lesson, the law says we can hold them for another ten hours without charge." He smiled, oblivious to Ray and Lou's horror. "I find when a lad spends a night in the cells, he comes out in no hurry to break the law again."

"You can't do that!" Ray roared.

"It's tough love, Mr. Smith." The Commissioner shrugged. "Sometimes a child needs to be shocked into changing their behavior." He lightly chuckled and led the fathers back to the lobby where Maya and Nya were waiting. Ray shot the Commissioner one last glare as he and Lou went to tell the girls the bad news.

"They're keeping him overnight!" Ray cried.

"They can't!" Nya shouted in horror.

"If you run now, you can make it to the forest," Loud said. "Cole and Kai are going to be in that cell when the moon rises, at least you three can get away." He explained when Nya suddenly gasped and snapped her fingers.

"That's it!" She grinned. "You can get Kai and Cole out of there before the moon rises, Dad if you tell them what'll happen if you don't." She said and her father's eyes widened in realization as the Commissioner walked over to them.

"I suggest you take your family home and come back for your sons in the morning." He tiredly said. "I'll show you out."

"Fine." Ray sighed in defeat. But there's something you need to know, Cole and Kai suffer from a psychological condition known as clinical lycanthropy." He explained loudly so Kai and Cole could hear him from their cell down the hall. Understanding what he wanted them to do, the two boys looked at each other and nodded.

"They think they're werewolves?" The Commissioner asked in disbelief.

"E-Exactly!" Maya said, finally catching on. "It's a recognized psychological condition; every full moon, they get distressed, even uncontrollable and I'm not talking bad behavior, I mean serious physical symptoms." She explained as inside the cell Kai and Cole started taking deep breaths and rocking in their seats, trying to get their wolves to surface, but not much.

"If you don't believe us, you can talk to their psychiatrist, Dr. Julien," Lou added.

"ARGH!" Kai cried as he felt a pain rush through his body and Cole bared his teeth, growling loudly.

"Panic attacks, animal behavior, growling, snarling, scratching the door trying to get out." Nya listed off. Hearing this, Cole started pacing around, growling and snarling like a caged animal and Kai started hitting and scratching against the cell door. Hearing the racket coming from the cell, the Commissioner looked back at the parents, concerned.

"I really don't-"

"Cole and Kai are in your custody." Ray interrupted. "Now that you understand the full context of their behavior, if either of them come to any harm in that room, it's your fault." He warned, causing the Commissioner to pause in thought.

"Please, release them into our care before they do any real harm." Maya pleaded as Lou pulled Nya aside.

"Winding themselves up with the moon rising?" He asked her anxiously. "What if they lose control for real?"

"They'll do that anyway if we don't get them out." Nya frowned when suddenly Kai let out a loud, desperate howl from inside the cell that screamed for help as it echoed throughout the police station, scaring the pants off the Commissioner and the officer behind the front desk. Maya and Ray desperately wanted to run and save their oldest cub but they had to be strong.

Inside the cell, Cole was panicking.

Kai's eyes had gone yellow and his veins had darkened. He was howling and growling as he marched around the room. Despite his best efforts to keep the wolf contained, he was about to transform, even though the moonrise was less than half an hour away by now. They need to get them out of this cell now or else they'd have to explain why Kai had suddenly disappeared and a very agitated wolf was in his place.

Realizing Kai was almost out of time, Nya stood up to the Commissioner and put on her best puppy eyes.

"You aren't going to charge them, so let's get them out before they hurt themselves and we end up with an official investigation." She pleaded and that seemed to be the final straw for the Commissioner. With a stone-cold expression, he led the fathers to the cell and opened into to reveal a thankfully still human Kai and Cole. Kai had his head down so the Commissioner wouldn't see his veins or eyes.

Saying a quick thanks to the Commissioner, the men grabbed their children and they all ran for Lou's car...

* * *

Piling into Lou's car, the dancer was speeding out of the parking lot before any of them had their seat belts on. They only had minutes before they transformed and they were only on the outskirts of the city. They needed to get as far into the first as they could before it was too late. In the back of the car, Kai lay in Maya's lap as the mother desperately tried to calm her anxious son down, but it was proving to be pointless at this stage.

"Take the road to the left!" Nya called out.

"But it's longer!" Lou cried.

"We just need to get as close to the forest as possible!" Ray insisted.

"But you can't... I mean, not so close to the city." The human whimpered.

"We don't have any choice!" Maya growled as her body felt the familiar tingle.

"Dad listen unless you can drive a car with five agitated wolves stuffed in with you, get us into the woods now!" Cole snarled and Lou gave his son a horrified look before he drove the car off the road and into the forest. The forest was a blur of greens and dark browns that flash passed them as the car sped down the dark and bumpy forest trail.

"STOP THE CAR!" Ray and Maya suddenly screamed and Lou slammed to a halt.

By now they had driven a good distance into the forest, far enough away from the city. As soon as the car stopped all five werewolves jumped out and not even two seconds later they transformed and took off running into the darkness, abandoning their clothes and Lou in the forest. The human could only watch from his car in a mixture of wonder and fear before he slowly drove back home, hoping his son would be alright...


	11. The Call of the Wild

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lloyd, Kai, Jay, and Cole are hanging out in the woods, when Jay notices someone, or something, spying on them. The boys quickly catch the scent and find horrifying news - the wild werewolf is back! While they are trying to find out who this wild werewolf is and what it wants, Lloyd's past catches up with him, and he has a big decision to make...

To say tensions were running high in the pack would be the understatement of the century. It had been almost a week since the incident at the police station and things hadn't improved any. They had managed to get rid of all the stolen clothes and Morro had been forced to give everyone back their money so they would keep quiet and the police eventually moved on as well. Unfortunately, that didn't mend his relationship with the others.

While the others were just disappointed in the lone wolf, Cole, Ray, Maya, Misako, and Wu had been livid.

All five of them had wanted him off their territory, none more so than Ray, however, much to everyone's surprise, it was Kai who came to Morro's defense. He reminded them that Morro didn't know the future and if it hadn't been for the angsty teen Kai would have drowned weeks ago. This managed to get the others to calm down especially his parents. However, Wu warned that if Morro made one more mistake then he was long gone, no exception.

The teens had all agreed to this and Morro had been walking on eggshells ever since.

To try and escape the tension, Lloyd had brought Cole, Jay, and Kai to the old rope swing in the forest they used to play on when they were kids on a steep hill. Thankfully the rope was still sturdy and could still support them. All four boys laughed and squealed as Cole swung around on the rope, going so high and fast that he nearly fell off.

"Go, Cole!" Kai shouted as the largest teen swung back over to them and jumped off the rope.

"My turn! My turn! My turn!" Jay giggled as he took the rope from Cole and started swing around on it. He was having a blast until his eyes suddenly caught something in the trees. There was something hiding there, watching the four boys. Jay let out a gasp as he lost his grip on the rope and fell to the ground with a thud and a cry of pain.

"Jay!" Lloyd exclaimed as they all ran down to help their friend.

"My knee!" He cried, clutching his injured knee tightly.

"Stay there, don't move it," Cole warned as he examined the knee and sighed in relief. "It's just bruised." He reassured as he and Kai helped the injured boy to his feet and allowed him to lean on them for support. As he got to his feet, Jay gasped when he saw the thing still watching them, only this time t was much closer than before.

He could see now that it was a person but he couldn't make out any features.

As soon as the person realized they had been spotted, they took off into the forest at a speed no human could achieve.

"Are you all right?" Lloyd asked when he saw the fearful expression on Jay's face.

"Someone's there, someone's spying on us." He gulped and others followed his gaze but saw nothing. They all took a deep breath and growled at the familiar, unwelcome scent still lingering. It was the same scent as the wild werewolf Jay and Zane had faced from the woods. Lloyd quickly went to investigate but they all knew the werewolf was long gone.

"This is where he was standing." The youngest teen pointed out as he examined some broken sticks on the ground.

"So he was spying on us?" Kai asked with an angry glare.

"Come on, let's get out of here," Cole said and they helped Jay hop back to Cole's car, unaware they were still being watched...

* * *

After they had left the woods, Lloyd called the others and told them to meet them at the Yin Yang cafe to discuss what just happened. The last time that wild werewolf was here he nearly attacked Pixel and Dareth and did attack Jay and Zane. Not only that but thanks to Pixel's beast hunts they had a good idea that the wild wolf was attacking house pets and local farms for food.

"I say we find it and teach him a lesson," Cole growled, not like another strange wolf on their territory.

"What I don't understand is why they came so close to the city? Just to watch some kids mess about on a rope swing?" Zane asked.

"Yeah, didn't Misako say wild werewolves hate humans and anything associated with them?" Nya asked.

"True, but maybe he needed something from us," Lloyd suggested.

"Oh sure, some creep in the bushes was watching up for who knows how long just to ask directions." Morro scoffed.

"Ah, you've seen him too, have you?" A new voice suddenly said and the group of teens looked to see Burke walking over to them with their orders.

"Seen who?" Jay asked.

"The homeless man that's been sleeping rough; he's been seen around the forest these last few nights." He shrugged and went back to the counter, leaving the teens to their thoughts.

"That doesn't make sense." Zane frowned. "Wild werewolves are super protective of their secrecy and are practically invisible, even to some non-wild werewolves.

"So if he can hide from us when he wants, that means when we see him it's because he wanted it." Nya sighed.

"I say after the soccer game on Friday, we all go into the forest and see what this werewolf wants," Kai said firmly, leaving no room for arguments.

"Oh yeah... about the game... I can't make it." Jay muttered fearfully and the others mumbled their own agreements.

"What do you mean, you're not coming?"

"To watch you kick a piece of leather around a field?" Morro groaned. "It's boring!"

"It's the finals! Aren't you guys coming to support us?"

"You lost to Oak Grove High last year and the year before!" Cole reminded him.

"That's why we need you!" Kai cried. "The crowd is like the 12th man on the team, supporting us."

"Don't you have cheerleaders for that?" Nya asked.

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" Kai glared. "Please!"

"Alright fine!" Lloyd sighed in defeat and the others reluctantly surrendered too, knowing the hothead wasn't going to stop until they did.

"I still don't get why you play on a team with Chad, the guy's a jackass." Morro frowned.

"On the field, all the things you're not good at, the people you don't get on with, fade away," Kai explained. "It's like your part of something bigger, you're part of the team."

"Don't you already have that?" Lloyd asked, gesturing to everyone at the table.

"It's not the same." Kai sighed...

* * *

Lloyd sighed as he walked along the forest trail towards his home. He couldn't get that wild werewolf out of his head. What did it want? There was no way it would come so close to a human city unless it was really desperate for something here. As he walked, Lloyd suddenly caught a sniff of something strange and he stopped walking. It faintly smelt of a werewolf, but he couldn't tell if it was from someone he knew. His friends and family walked this trail all the time.

With that in mind, Lloyd made to start walking again, only to freeze when he heard the sound of rustling close to him.

He began looking around at the forest surrounding him in a circle as the forest suddenly seemed to be alive with sound. The creaking of old trees, the rustling of leaves in the cold Autumn winds, and the flutter of bird's wings as they fled the area. Lloyd decided to do the same and wanted to make a break for his house. When he turned back around, however, he jumped out of his skin when he saw a scruffy man standing there, staring at him with wide eyes.

The man towered over the teen, with Lloyd only coming up to his shoulders, and he smelt as bad as he looked.

The stranger looked and smelled absolutely horrible. The man looked to be around his uncle's age with silver-grey hair and dark, wild eyes. What was once a black shirt was now a dirty, flimsy piece of fabric, held together by a handful of fibers that hung from his shoulders like a discarded old towel. There was a huge hole in one of the shoulders which reached almost all the way down, leaving much of him exposed to the elements.

He was wearing a worn-out black coat over his shirt.

It was a size too large, it was dirty and it was torn, but at least it helped him stay protected from the wind, even if only for a little. His pants had seen better times as well. The pants were covered in small tears and covered in unknown stains. But at least he had shoes to protect his feet. Although they were grimy, way too big and there was a hole in the left one which let in water and dirt. His head was covered by a black beanie with a small dirt stain on one of the sides, but that was its only real flaw.

Through the holes in his rags, Lloyd could see his skin was littered with white scars.

Most were old but a few looked fresh. Lloyd took a quick sniff and froze. It was the wild werewolf from before. There was also something vaguely familiar about his scent, but Lloyd couldn't understand why. Cautiously, the teen slowly backed away, remembering what this man did to Jay and Zane and what his mother and uncle had told him about wild werewolves.

"Who are you?" Lloyd growled, trying to sound braver than he was. "What do you want?"

"Boku wa kimi no otōsan." The man replied in a language Lloyd had only heard Wu speak in sometimes, but he didn't understand it. Seeing the boy's confusion, the man sighed in disappointment before fixing Lloyd with a determined face. "I'm your father." He said in English and Lloyd went pale.

"I don't have a..." He gulped as he tried to remember his father. His mom said his dad walked out on them when he was just a baby. "You can't..."

"I am, Lloyd." The man, his father, smiled weakly. "I'm your father." He repeated and moved in to hug his son.

"No!" Lloyd suddenly cried and ran all the way back home as if the devil was on his tail. When he got home he was devastated when he saw his uncle and mother weren't there. He locked all the doors and windows and locked himself in his bedroom, hoping this was all just a disturbing nightmare...

* * *

The next morning, Lloyd came downstairs to find his mother and uncle sat at the table, enjoying their breakfast. As soon as they saw him, Misako smiled at her son and handed him a bowl of cereal as he sat down. The three werewolves sat in a content silence until Lloyd suddenly cleared his throat, getting the two adults' full attention. What that wild werewolf had said had been bothering him all night.

"Mom, what happened between you and Dad?" He finally asked. Misako and Wu shared an uncomfortable look before she sighed in defeat. Her son was old enough to know some of the truth.

"Well Lloyd, as you know your father, Garmadon, is your Uncle Wu's older brother and we were together for many years and then you came along." She smiled. "I thought we'd be happy until Garmadon suddenly left without a word; no one has seen him since." She sighed sadly.

"Why did he leave?"

"Because he was a cowered, who shirked his responsibilities," Wu growled, glaring at his breakfast as if it just spat at him.

"W-What did he look like?" Lloyd asked. His whole life he had only heard his father's name briefly mentioned from time to time, but he never knew what the man looked like. There were no pictured of Garmadon anywhere in the house. Misako looked at her son for a few moments before opening her purse and handing Lloyd a small old picture. Lloyd looked at it and gasped. The man in the picture was the wild werewolf, his father.

He was standing beside a younger Misako, who was holding a newborn Lloyd snugly in her arms, both of them had loving smiles on their frozen faces.

"Why do you suddenly wish to know more about your father?" Wu suddenly asked suspiciously.

"No reason, I gotta go." Lloyd quickly said as he gave the photo back to Misako and almost ran out of the house.

"Lloyd, everything I've done, every choice I've made, it was to protect you." His mother called after him, but Lloyd didn't respond as he ran to catch the school bus...

* * *

That afternoon after school the pack had gathered at their usual booth at the Yin Yang cafe. While the others were happily chatting and enjoying themselves, Lloyd's mind was elsewhere. He couldn't get the thought of his father out of his head. He wanted to know why he came back now and the reason why he left him and his family in the first place. But at the same time, he didn't. His uncle was right. His father abandoned him and his mother when he was just a baby, just so he could run wild.

He was so distracted he didn't notice his friends' discussion had moved to the wild werewolf who they didn't know was Lloyd's father.

"We'll go back to the rope swing at dusk, the ground will be damp, it'll hold his scent better," Nya explained.

"Lloyd?" Morro asked when he saw the faraway look on the younger wolf. "Lloyd, are you even listening?"

"Y-Yeah, can we just forget we ever saw him?" He pleaded.

"No!" Cole frowned. "We need to deal with this as soon as possible, why would you ask that?" He asked and Lloyd froze. He looked at each of them in thought, before sighing.

"I... I saw him yesterday when I walked home." He said and they gasped.

"Did you speak to him?" Jay asked nervously.

"Guys, he's my Dad." He admitted, much to the shock of the others.

"What's he doing here now?" Kai asked.

"I dunno, I ran away." He sighed before his face became one of rage. "He can't just turn up like this! He left me and my Mom when I was a baby, what kind of father does that?"

"You don't know what really happened," Zane said calmly. "No-one does."

"Except him." Morro pointed out.

"Yeah, so if you want to find out the truth, you have to talk to him." Kai nodded.

"But... I can't." He whimpered. Sensing the fear in him, Nya reached over and took his hands into hers. She was about to say something when they all froze as smell filled the air. They all looked to the door and saw Garmadon standing there his eyes fixed on his son. Knowing that this was between Lloyd and his father, the others quickly moved out of the booth and stood at the front of the cafe by the counter.

"Is he buying anything?" Burke asked them, eyeing the newcomer nervously.

"He'll have a coffee." Cole sighed as Garmadon took a seat across from Lloyd

"What are you doing here?" Lloyd hissed. "You're on our territory."

"It was my territory once, and what will the tame werewolves do about it?" He growled, shooting the others a glare, which they returned. Burke walked over with the cup of hot coffee and placed it in front of the man before quickly walking away. Garmadon sniffed the beverage deeply and coughed and spluttered at the smell. A couple of the customers looked at him strangely and some even left.

"Come on, let's go!" Lloyd blushed.

"You don't have to be afraid."

"I'm not afraid I'm embarrassed." He snapped. "They're different."

"Different words, same HUMAN emotion." He replied, shooting the others another glare.

"What do you want?"

"Watashi no utsukushī musuko." Garmadon smiled, only to sigh when Lloyd gave him a confused look. "My beautiful son." He said and Lloyd's eyes widened.

"Newsflash, 'Dad' - you're 16 years late!"

"I couldn't get you!" Garmadon defended. "I tried to take you back but your mother and uncle wouldn't let me, said I wasn't fit to be a father!"

"That wouldn't have happened if you lived as a human being."

"That's worse than being locked up."

"Why now?"

"I sensed your first transformation." He replied. "It was then I knew it was time for you to lead the life you were born for."

"How did you find me?"

"Shin no ōkami otoko wa sore jishin no shurui o mitsukeru koto ga dekimasu."

"Speak in English!" Lloyd snapped.

"A true werewolf can find its own kin." He frowned at his son's tone as Chad and his gang suddenly walked in, laughing loudly.

"Your friends, your uncle, and your mother, they've corrupted you, made you tame, like them." Garmadon huffed and Kai was about to go over and give the wild man a piece of his mind, but Cole and Zane stopped him.

"Don't you dare talk bad about Mom!" Lloyd snarled. "Her and the rest of my pack were here for me, whilst you were too busy running wild!"

"Hey Burke, has something gone off? There's a nasty smell about." Chad suddenly laughed, smirking at Lloyd and Garmadon. "I think it's coming from that table."

"Fuck off Chad!" Cole growled.

"You've brought this on yourself, trying to live by their rules," Garmadon whispered sharply. "You can't go over there and teach them the lesson they deserve without revealing yourself, you can't be human; but as long as you're hiding, pretending, you can't fully be a werewolf either."

"Who do you think his new friend is?" One of Chad's friends asked.

"Maybe it's a self-help group, Weirdos Anonymous!" Chad replied and they burst out laughing.

"Can we go somewhere else?" Lloyd plead.

"Yes." Garmadon nodded and they made to leave.

"Aw, it stinks!" Chad gagged as they walked past them, only to scream when Garmadon suddenly grabbed his shirt and pulled him close. He hissed into the teen's face, eyes wide and wild as he bared his teeth.

"Stop it!" Lloyd cried as he, Nya, and Jay pulled his father off the teen and he alone dragged his father out of the cafe.

"He's an animal! He should be locked up!" Chad cried as he trembled in his boots. The group of werewolves shared nervous looks, hoping Lloyd would be alright...

* * *

The father and son ran from the cafe and out of the city for an hour until they were deep in the forest. Due to it being the middle of Autumn, the night came quicker, plunging the forest into darkness. As they slowly came to a stop, Lloyd was trying to catch his breath, the adrenaline running through his veins, all the while his father was laughing like a mad man. Lloyd just looked at the man who gave him life like he was a psychopath.

"They could have called the police! People know you've been sleeping here!" He growled. "What if they come to find you?"

"Why would I let them find me?" Garmadon smirked.

"You're a werewolf, not invisible!"

"Werewolves ARE invisible." He insisted. "We walk in the margins of the world, we move without a sound, we are shadow and night and the bright strength of the moon and we are beyond their understanding." He smirked and Lloyd just rolled his eyes. There are senses you've never even used, things you can do you've never even imagined, things that your tame friends will never know how to do."

"Like what?" He asked.

"We call it Jōhō, and I can teach you how to use it." Replied the wild man before looking to the skyscrapers poking out over the treeline. "Or you can go back." He added and Lloyd looked back to the city. He wanted to go back to his friends but at the same time, he wanted to get to know his father, even if a part of him will never forgive the man for leaving him.

"What's Jōhō?" He sighed. Garmadon smiled and knelt down to the ground and placed a hand against the ground and Lloyd copied him.

"Jōhō allows werewolves to connect with nature in a way you never could before." He explained.

"Ok, so I should try and-"

"Don't 'try'." He spat. "Humans try, we listen to our instincts."

"Right, listen to my instincts," Lloyd muttered as he closed his eyes and tried to concentrate, but nothing happened. "I can't do this! I don't know-how!" He cried after a few minutes.

"Lloyd, you must listen to me," Garmadon said calmly. "Feel the earth under you, feel the wind over you, feel the grass and the clouds and the sky." Lloyd closed his eyes and took deep breaths, listening to what his father said. "You are part of everything, you ARE nature, you are wild!" He exclaimed and Lloyd suddenly gasped as he felt a sudden jolt go through him. His now yellow eyes snapped open and he started moving in all directions.

He could see everything!

He could see Kai and Cole in Kai's apartment, curled up on the couch watching a movie. He could see Pixel, Nya, and Zane doing their homework. He could see Jay helping his dad fix something in their junkyard and he could see Morro standing in his foster parents' back yard, looking up at the starry sky, worry clear on his face. Lloyd gasped as his mind returned to normal and he smiled at his dad, who looked at him with pride.

"It is beautiful when you are part of nature, isn't it, my boy? The pack runs with Jōhō, that is how we exist." The wild man smiled as he gently took hold of his son's hand. "Lloyd, there is a mystery inside yourself, it is not only that you feel different, but you also don't feel whole."

"How do you know?"

"Our kind can help solve that mystery and make you complete."

"You want me to go with you? Forever?"

"What have you got to go back to?" Garmadon asked. "Bullies, schoolwork, teachers who've already given up on you? If you come with me, you'll have a pack."

"I've already got a pack." He glared.

"Traitors to our species." He spat venomously. "You belong with your own kind."

"I-I can't decide," Lloyd muttered fearfully. "Give me some time to think."

"Thinking is for humans, you must trust your instincts." Garmadon insisted. "Come and be complete."...

* * *

When Lloyd arrived home in the early hours of the morning, he found a very disappointed Misako. After thinking of some half thought out an excuse, she grounded him and sent him to his room. Once she was sure he and Wu were asleep, she grabbed her car keys and drove into the woods. She wasn't stupid. She had wondered why Lloyd was suddenly asking about his father and when he had come home, she could smell the man on her son's clothes.

Now she was searching the woods for her ex-husband.

Lloyd's father and she had some unresolved issues to deal with. It didn't take long for her to find him. The man was sitting against a tree, looking up at the stars, seemingly lost in his own thoughts, close to falling asleep. Misako had had years to think of what she would do if she ever saw Garmadon again. She thought she might be angry, sad, she might have even kissed her lost love. Instead, she felt nothing for the wild man before her.

Garmadon suddenly froze as he sniffed the air, and smirked.

"Misako." He chuckled as he slowly turned to face the woman he loved. "You haven't changed."

"I'm going to ask you a question." She hissed. "Lie to me, and I tear you to shreds."

"I don't doubt it." He chuckled.

"Why are you here?"

"I came for my son!" He glared.

"I knew it." She snarled. "I'm not going to let you take my son, you know."

"I know." He admitted. "But if he chooses to come freely, what will you be willing to do?"...

* * *

The next day at school, all the students could talk about was Lloyd and his father, although only the teenage werewolves knew that fact. Nearly getting hurt by a wild werewolf did nothing to temper Chad's tongue. In fact, he had posted online how he had been attacked by a homeless man who was friends with Lloyd. As they sat in their Social Studies class, the pack noticed Lloyd was running late. Normally, they wouldn't bat an eye at that, but with Garmadon suddenly appearing out of the blue.

Along with what happened at the cafe, the others were starting to get worried.

They were about to abandon the class to form a search party when the missing teen finally ran into class, his backpack looking bigger than normal.

"How's your smelly friend, Lloyd?" Chad laughed when he saw him. Lloyd ignored him however and took his seat.

"You all right?" Nya whispered so only she, the boys, and Lloyd could hear their conversation.

"We were worried about you," Jay added.

"Is your father OK?" Zane asked.

"What happened?" Cole asked and Lloyd sighed.

"Got home about 1 am, Mom, went ballistic, and I'm grounded for about 100 years, but everything's all right." He explained.

"And your dad?" Kai asked and Lloyd was about to answer when Miss. Koko suddenly walked into the classroom.

"All right students, let's have some quiet in here, please!" She called and started the lesson. The lesson dragged on for what seemed like an eternity until the bell finally rang and the students rushed out, none faster than Lloyd. He took off before the others could stop him. They all shared a look and nodded as Nya and Morro chased after him. It took them a short while to track him down, but they eventually found him in the gymnasium.

They slowly approached and saw the blonde teen pulling a sleeping bag out of his backpack.

As soon as he noticed their presence, he tried to hide the sleeping bag but knew it was too late.

"Lloyd, what are you doing?" Morro asked.

"I'm going with him." Replied Lloyd after a tense moment.

"What?!" Both Morro and Nya cried.

"He's my dad, he can teach me things!" He justified.

"You can't just run away!" Nya exclaimed. "I'll tell your parents!"

"You won't." He scoffed. "Pixel would, she'd think she was doing the right thing, saving me from a hopeless father." He explained. "But you guys know the truth, I'm going to live the life I was born for."

"And what if it's not?" Morro asked. "What if you get there and you hate it?"

"Well, maybe I will, but you've got to let me try." He shrugged and walked away. Morro and Nya could only share a worried look...

* * *

That afternoon after school was the big soccer game. As promised Lloyd and the others had come to watch Kai play. Even Pixel had shown up, despite the fact she knew nothing about soccer. Nya and Morro had told the others Lloyd's plan, and even though they tried to talk him out of it, he had already made his decision. He was meeting up with his father after the game. Then they were leaving. Possibly forever. As soon as everyone from Ninjago High and Oak Grove High had taken their seats in the bleachers the teams ran out onto the field and the crowd started cheering and applauding loudly.

The teams took their places and the cheerleaders from both schools began their chants.

The referee blew his whistle, starting the game. The game went off without a hitch, with the crowd applauding and cheering the whole way. Suddenly the referee blew his whistle again. The players were all panting and sweating a sea. While many people in the crowd shouted words of encouragement some, most of them from Ninjago High groaned in defeat.

"What's going on now?" Pixel asked.

"Their 90 minutes are up," Zane replied.

"Then why are they still playing?" She asked

"Injury time." Nya shrugged.

"Are we winning?" Jay asked in confusion.

"No one's scored yet, are you even watching?" Cole glared as the players took their positions.

"Oh no, it's a penalty kick!" Lloyd groaned.

"Is that a good thing?" Pixel asked.

"No!" Nya exclaimed. "Oak Grove High will score and then they'll win the game!"

"Right, penalty kick, bad." Pixel nodded and they all turned their attention to the game. A player from Oak Grove High stood in front of the Ninjago High goal while the goalkeeper trembled in place. The player suddenly kicked the ball at the goal and then something amazing happened. The goalkeeper suddenly jumped up and grabbed the ball. Before the Oak Grove High players could react he threw the ball to Kai, who was closest to the Oak Grove High goal.

It took the Oak Grove High players a second to realize what had happened, but by then it was too late.

Kai was already to the goal with only the Oak Grove High goalkeeper in his way. The goalkeeper dove for the ball but Kai, thinking quickly, kicked the ball in between the goalkeeper's legs and maneuvered around him and towards the unguarded goal. Kai kicked the ball into the goal and the referee blew on his whistle for the last time, ending the match. Ninjago High had won. The whole of the Ninjago High crowd erupted into cheers and applause as they ran onto the field to congratulate their soccer team.

The pack hugged and slapped Kai's back, ignore how sweating the spiky-haired teen was until the rest of the team suddenly picked him up and carried him off the field on their shoulders.

As they disappeared towards the school, Lloyd couldn't help the big grin on his face. He knew how much this meant to Kai and he was so happy that the boy he considered a brother not only got what he wanted, but it was he who scored the winning goal. He sighed happily before making his way to the school with the others...

* * *

After they had finished getting changed, the players walked out into a crowd of students congratulating them, mainly Kai. After nearly five minutes of praise Kai finally managed to maneuver his way out of the crowd and took off down the hallway. Normally he loved all the attention, but he and his friends had plans to meet at the Yin Yang cafe. This was also their last chance to convince Lloyd not to go. He eventually found them all hanging around just outside the school, waiting for him.

Pixel was nowhere to be seen, most likely going to hold their table at the Yin Yang cafe.

Kai sighed in relief when he saw Lloyd was still with them, for the moment anyway.

"Hey, it's the man of the match," Cole smirked as he patted the proud teen on the back.

"I've never seen you so happy." Nya smiled. "Well, not in human form, anyway."

"It was a buzz." He admitted. "Winning, being part of the team." He smiled and gave Lloyd a look. "Belonging somewhere."

"I guess." Lloyd shrugged, trying to ignore the looks the others were giving him.

"You know, it's not too late to change your mind," Zane said hopefully.

"Or is this where we say goodbye?" Morro asked.

"It's my choice, guys." Lloyd sighed, much to the sorrow of the other.

"I hate goodbyes, anyway!" Kai snapped and stormed off. Lloyd desperately looked to the others, hoping they would understand. Unfortunately, they looked down and walked away. Lloyd just sighed in defeat and ran off to the woods to meet his dad. He found the wild man in the same spot where he taught Lloyd Jōhō. As soon as he heard his son approaching, Garmadon glared at him. Frustration and impatience were evident on his face.

"We should be gone by now." He growled.

"I said I'd see you once I'd finished." Lloyd frowned, clutching his backpack tightly.

"Finished what?"

"Watching Kai play soccer, did you watch too?"

"I don't watch humans playing their games," Garmadon said in disgust.

"Well, you should have." He glared. "Then you might understand... why I can't come with you." He mumbled, much to his father's shock and slight horror.

"You want to stay here?" He asked in disbelief.

"It might have been a game, but it was important to Kia and I was part of that, what he wanted, I wanted and it's not something I was born into; it's my choice." He explained as Garmadon's eyes turned yellow in rage.

"I'm offering you freedom!" He shouted. "The werewolf life!"

"Everyone gets to choose how they want to live, and I can't live like you," Lloyd replied. "If you stay around, then we can see each other." He suggested, hope clear in his voice, but he knew it was pointless.

"Did they make you do this?" He snarled. "Your tame friends?"

"Don't you ever call anyone in MY pack tame!" He roared.

"They've corrupted you." He growled. "I'm your father!"

"Who wasn't there!" He snapped. Garmadon snarled as his veins revealed themselves, his teeth and nails sharpened. Suddenly he charged at the teen and Lloyd flinched away, bracing for the blow. However, Garmadon just snarled like a wild animal and took off into the forest and out of his son's life once again...

* * *

Meanwhile, the Yin Yang cafe was alive with energy as the students inside were chatting about their victory at the big game.

Sadly, Kai and the others weren't in the mood to celebrate. They sat in silence as they thought about Lloyd. They wondered what Misako and Wu would do when they found out Lloyd had left with his father. Would they track him down and drag him back home? If they didn't, they hoped Lloyd would be alright in the wild. There was a whole other pack out there waiting for him. They were worried the wild werewolves would turn on Lloyd because he didn't know their ways.

Hopefully, Garmadon wouldn't allow that to happen.

They were also worried the wild werewolves would make Lloyd think like them, and he might start to hate them and his family for living like humans instead of wild. They knew Lloyd was smart, but they had also hoped he would make the right decision. The feelings of sorrow and hopelessness built up around them until the doors to the cafe suddenly opened. They didn't pay any attention when suddenly they caught the scent of something very familiar.

They all looked up and gasped when they saw Lloyd standing before them with a big smile on his face.

"Lloyd?!" Nya cried in joy as they all shot out of their seats and embraced the blonde-haired teen. Lloyd just laughed and smiled at his friends, his family. He'd pick them over being wild any day...


	12. Runaway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Lloyd, Kai discovers a new werewolf sense and can't get enough of it, but will this new obsession end up destroying him?...

Kai Smith yawned loudly as he and Lloyd carefully hiked through the thick forest outside of Ninjago City. It had been a week since Garmadon had returned and left again and Misako was overjoyed that her son was staying home. The others had told their parents and Ray and Maya had been worried until their children had promised them that Garmadon was gone for good. At least, they hoped so. Ever since Garmadon had returned and showed his son the wild werewolf power of Jōhō, Kai had been trying to get Lloyd to show him how to perform some of the wild technique.

Finally, the blonde teen gave up and insisted that they needed to find a quiet spot full of nature, so they went to the same spot Garmadon had taught him.

"So, what are we doing here buddy?" Kai asked as he stifled another yawn.

"Dad told me the wild werewolves call it 'Jōhō'," Lloyd explained as he showed Kai what to do. Kai copied the younger teen as he knelt down and placed his hand into the dirt, inches away from Lloyd's. "She said you can't just look, you have to feel." The younger male added and Kai nodded. "Feel what's under you, feel what's around you; if you can you'll connect to your oldest instincts, your primal nature, and then you'll know what Jōhō is."

"I'm trying to focus here." He snapped as he took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He gasped as he felt a sudden jolt go through him as his eyes snapped open and his eyes started moving in all directions. Lloyd smiled when he saw that Kai had managed to achieve Jōhō.

"Are you OK?" He asked as a smile spread across his friend's face and he was looking around in all directions.

"I can see everything, hear everything." He muttered as he looked to the left and saw a momma bird feeding her babies on the other side of the forest and when he turned to the right he saw a fisherman's boat miles off the coast of the beach. "This is amazing." He smiled as he stood up, still in a trance. All of a sudden he took off running at full speed back through the forest, laughing as he ran. Lloyd gasped and ran after his best friend.

Kai may have been faster than Lloyd but with so many trees and rocks blocking his way he couldn't build up enough momentum.

However, Lloyd was still having trouble keeping up with the spiky-haired teen.

"Kai! Kai, wait, not that way!" He cried, but Kai wouldn't listen as he disappeared into the green forest. "Kai, please wait! Kai!"

"Whoo!" Kai laughed as he ran into a small clearing. He suddenly cried out in pain as he fell to the grassy floor, clutching his head tightly. He looked around and saw an overhead power cable a few feet away from him. It was messing with his Jōhō, making a horrible ringing noise in his ears.

"Kai! Snap out of it!" Lloyd screamed when he finally caught up with his friend. "You're too near the pylon!" He noticed when Kai suddenly went limp in his grip. Lloyd looked down and panicked when he saw his friend had passed out due to the pain. "Kai, please wake up!" The younger wolf begged as he felt tears in his eyes, fearing the worst. Kai suddenly sat up, gasping for air. Lloyd sighed in relief when he saw that his friend had come out of his Jōhō trance.

"What just happened?" He asked as he started to get a dull migraine.

"The electrical signals in the pylon must have interfered with your powers," Lloyd concluded as he helped Kai stand up. "You've got to be careful with this stuff." He added and Kai could only nod, looking up at the pylon in slight fear...

* * *

"You did what?!" Ray shouted at his son and Lloyd while Maya and Nya watched from the sidelines. Kai and Lloyd had just gotten back to Kai's apartment and explained to his parents and sister about what they had been doing with Jōhō, including what had happened when Kai got too close to the pylon.

"I don't see the problem, Dad." Kai smiled like a kid in a candy store. "It's amazing!"

"It's not amazing, it's dangerous!" Ray glared.

"How would you know, if you've never tried it?" Kai argued.

"That's not the point!"

"I'm the one who should be upset, I'm the one who had to find out from someone else's dad!" He snapped.

"Garmadon taught you how to do this?" Nya asked, not seeing the fearful looks her parents shared with each other.

"No, he taught me then I taught Kai." Lloyd replied nervously "I'm sorry about this Mr. and Mrs. Smith," He muttered. "I-It just went a bit wrong."

"A bit wrong? He passed out!" Maya exclaimed.

"That's exactly why we didn't want you finding out about this nonsense," Ray added.

"But I think Kai is right honey, I think it was our job to tell him and Nya." Maya suddenly said calmly, much to her husband's frustration. "I've been there, I've done that." She admitted.

"You've used Jōhō?" Kai asked in shock.

"I dabbled a bit when I was younger." She chuckled.

"Maya!" Ray warned.

"What? It was fun, as long as you keep it in the wild." She shrugged. "He only passed out because of the electricity coming from the pylon, it's no-one's fault." She said but Ray turned to glare at the boys.

"I think you better go home, Lloyd." He said. Kai wanted to argue, but the younger teen stopped him.

"See you tomorrow," He smiled at the siblings before leaving. As soon as they heard the door shut, Kai turned to glare at his parents.

"Well, that was rude." He hissed.

"I don't want you messing with it again, do you understand?" Ray growled as Kai stood up and made his way to his bedroom. "Jōhō wrecks families and lives!"

"The only person wrecking things is you!" Kai shouted before running to his room and slamming the door.

"Nice job, very supportive," Ray growled at Maya, who scoffed in disbelief at her husband's attitude while their daughter watched in confusion and concern. "We're supposed to be a team!"

"My thoughts, exactly." Maya glared.

"Don't you care about your son?"

"Of course I care! I'm talking about you, treating my opinions like they're worthless!" She snapped. Seeing that there was nothing she could do, Nya silently went to her own room, hoping things would be better tomorrow...

* * *

Kai groaned as he calmly walked through the city on a cold Sunday morning. It had been a day since he had discovered the incredible power of Jōhō and things at his house were very tense. That night he had heard his parents arguing and he kept hearing them say something about Jōhō and Garmadon. He hadn't used Jōhō since yesterday but he really wanted to go back to back to the forest and give it another go. He sighed and took a detour into a local park to clear his mind.

This was Munrial Park and he and Nya use to come here all the time with their parents when they were little.

The park mostly consisted of a tousled bed of grass which was surrounded by thriving hedges and flower bushes. A pagoda stood to the right of the park, offering a tranquil resting place. The rows of flowers were barely visible at first but offered a spectacular surprise when found. The hedges and flower bushes reach 6ft in height. A path was marked through the park with a short, wooden border, giving people an elegant way of exploring the park and all it had to offer.

Vines were starting to reclaim even all pieces of land, eager to expand their own dominion.

The pagoda claimed this land first, as the park was designed around it. The rows of flowers were hard to miss, and the hedges and flower bushes definitely deserved to be paid attention to as well. But you couldn't win when the park was designed around the pagoda. To the left of the park were a picnic area and large pieces of playground equipment with dozens of children playing on them. Kai looked towards the picnic area and frowned when he saw his mother sitting on a bench, staring out towards the playground.

He quietly walked over to her and sat down.

"Mom, are you OK?" He asked.

"Just lost in my memories." She sighed. "It was so easy when you and your sister were little, no hard questions and whenever you were sad your father and I would take you to the park." She chuckled fondly at the memories.

"Mom, how old were you when you first learned about Jōhō?" He asked nervously.

"16, perhaps 17." She replied.

"Why did you stop?"

"I met your father." She sighed. "He's always one for emphasizing the human, you know what he's like and he's right, mostly, it's up to us to fit in, not the other way around."

"I don't see why we can't fit in and be special." He frowned. "Why can't you do it anymore?"

"I don't know." She admitted. "Maybe if you don't use it you lose it, maybe it's just beyond me now, it has been years but it's not like I need it or anything." She explained and they sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Mom, are you and Dad OK?"

"Of course we are honey."

"Well, I heard you fighting last night."

"Sweetheart, we're fine." She reassured. "Your dad's just worried about you and your sister, that's all."

"It wasn't all about me."

"Kai, as you grow older, you'll realize relationships aren't easy." She smiled as she pulled her son into a hug. "These things happen."

"Where is Dad, anyway?"...

* * *

Unbeknownst to his children or wife, Ray Smith had driven all the way to the Garmadon household to have a little talk with Lloyd and his mother. As soon as he pulled up outside the cottage, he ran up and angrily pounded until a fearfully and slightly annoyed Lloyd opened the door. Ray took a quick sniff and deduced that Misako and Wu were not home.

"Oh hello, Mr. Smith, how can I help you?" Lloyd asked when he realized who it was.

"You can help by promising not to use Jōhō around Kai, or encourage him in any way," Ray growled. "I don't even want either of you talking about it, do you understand?"

"You can't tell us what we're allowed to talk about." Lloyd frowned. Ray had never been this angry with him before, but Lloyd would not be spoken to like that in his own home.

"That's exactly what I'm doing." He glared. "If you thought about someone besides yourself, you'd realize it's for his own good! Do we have an agreement?"

"Has Kai agreed to this?"

"I'm telling you, not Kai."

"All right, I'll do it only if Kai agrees," Lloyd said firmly

"Right, that's it." Ray snarled. "You're not seeing him or Nya again."

"Excuse me?" He asked in shock.

"You're not seeing them again." He repeated.

"We're in most of the same classes!" He cried

"Then I forbid you to see them out of class." Ray counted and then he walked away, leaving a very confused Lloyd standing in the doorway...

* * *

After their talk at the park, Maya and Kai had returned home to find Nya but no Ray so they continued their Jōhō conversation while all three of them peeled some potatoes for tonight's dinner. Maya was a little worried about her husband but didn't want to worry her children about it too much, especially after what Kai had said to her in the park. Instead, she decided to give them a history lesson.

"Before electricity, most werewolves lived in towns, well, on the outskirts anyway." She explained. "Jōhō was just taken for granted as a way to stay connected to their pack."

"So, why's Dad so dead set against it?" Kai asked.

"Because it's supposed to be addictive and it doesn't seem to work in the modern world." She sighed. "Some people say it drives werewolves mad, drives them back to the wild."

"Do you agree?" Nya asked.

"I've seen it happen to a small number of werewolves, maybe it affects some more than others."She replied. "Like some humans can control their emotions and appetites more than others." She sighed when Ray suddenly walked in, a fiery expression on his face. "Oh, hello, where did you get to?"

"I went to see Lloyd." He said harshly as he glared at his children. "You two are not to hang out with him anymore, outside of school, he's persona non grata, do I make myself clear?"

"You can't do this!" Nya cried.

"Yes, I can, young lady." He glared. "You're not seeing him again until both of you promise me to my face that you'll never use Jōhō ever again." He told Kai.

"How dare you just come in here and talk to me like that!" His son snarled as he stood up. "I'm a werewolf now! Not some little cub you can just boss around!"

"In my house, under my rules, you are a cub, our cub, and you'll do as you're told!" Ray snapped.

"Mom and Nya don't agree! Tell him!" He said, but both girls stayed quiet. "Oh, great, you're scared of him." He scoffed.

"No, I'm not." Maya calmly said while Nya stayed quiet, not wanting to make things worse.

"Yeah! You are! You're all scared!" He shouted. "We're werewolves, Dad! Not humans and Jōhō is mine to do what I want with it!" He growled before he suddenly pushed past his dad and to his room.

"Kai Ash Smith! Get back here! I am talking to you!" Ray called angrily but Kai just slammed the door loudly.

"You handled that well." Maya sighed.

"Yeah, well somebody had to!" Ray snapped at her.

"Ray, I know where you're coming from but this has to stop." She pleaded.

"Yeah, well do more to control your son and it will!" He exclaimed before he too stormed off. See her mother's distressed state, Nya pulled her into a comforting hug, hoping her brother and father came to their senses soon...

* * *

Cole yawned as he groggery woke up to a thumping sound. He was usually such a heavy sleeper so he wondered why the thumping sound had woken him up so easily. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, Cole looked around his dark bedroom. As the fog cleared from his mind, he realized that the sound was from someone knocking at his window. He went over and saw Kai on the fire escape with a rucksack on his shoulder. The raven-haired teen opened the window and Kai quickly climbed inside to escape the cold.

"What's happened?" Cole asked.

"My Dad," Kai growled. "Can you put us up for a few days?"

"Can I what?"

"Please Cole, he's driving us mad! I can't live with him anymore!"

"Oh yes, because he'd never be able to track you back to my house, what was I thinking?" He replied with an eye roll. "Maybe you should just keep your head down and wait for him to calm down."

"What's wrong with everyone?!" Kai hissed. "All I want to do is live my life as a werewolf, which I am! I'm sick of being lied to and manipulated!"

"You know your parents care about you, even if they have got a weird way of showing it.."

"They don't care about us, they're just scared of being a werewolf."

"Kai, it's two am." Cole groaned. "Stop being such a bitch and go home."

"Right." He huffed. "Well, thanks for all the support." He glared before climbing back out the window and down the fire escape.

"It'll work out, you know it will," Cole called after him. "Where are you going?"

"What do you care?!" He growled before dashing off into the echoing city night...

* * *

The next morning Ray and Maya went to see if their son was in his room. They had waited for almost an hour for the spiky-haired teen to come downstairs for breakfast but there was no sign of him. They had already sent Nya to school so he hadn't gone with her. When he realized the teen wasn't in his room, Ray began to tear the room apart.

"Some of his clothes are gone." He frowned.

"Maybe he just didn't feel like having breakfast with us," Maya suggested.

"And his rucksack's gone." He panicked. "Do you think he-"

"What? Runaway? Can't say I'd be surprised." She glared. After realizing Kai wasn't anywhere near the apartment, Ray and Maya went looking for Nya and their friends to see if they'd seen him. They found the group hanging out by the lockers but were devastated when they saw Kai wasn't with them.

"Have you kids seen Kai?" Ray asked the second he came up to them.

"You still haven't found him yet?" Nya asked worriedly.

"I haven't seen him since late last night." Cole suddenly said.

"You saw him last night?" Maya asked.

"Yeah, he came to mine, but I told him to go home and he left."

"We haven't seen him either," Jay added and the others nodded in agreement.

"Don't worry, he's just trying to make a point," Nya reassured her parents. "We'll find him in the forest somewhere, cooling off."

"We can come with you." Zane offered.

"No! You can't miss school, we'll find him," Maya replied.

"But I can see him," Lloyd suggested.

"We don't need you 'seeing' anything!" Ray hissed. "You think werewolves can't track their own cubs?" He snapped before storming off. Maya gave the teens an apologetic look before following her husband...

* * *

Kai giggled to himself as he ran through the forest. He was happily using Jōhō again and was enjoying the feeling, all the things he could see and everything he could hear. As he was running, he suddenly froze when he saw parents not too far away from his location are trying to pick up his trail. Thinking quickly, Kai started spinning and swerving around trees, scattering his scent confusing his parents.

"You still mad at me?" Ray asked as they trudged through the forest.

"What do you think?" Maya glared. "You pushed him to this!"

"I know!" Ray cried, shocking his wife. "I know I messed up but I was trying to protect him! After what happened to Garmadon I just... I wanted..." He stuttered closing his eyes tightly to prevent the tears from falling.

"Oh, Ray." Maya sighed as she pulled her husband into an embrace. "We're going to find him, I promise." She reassured and they stayed like that for a few moments until the wind suddenly picked up and they finally picked up Kai scent.

"I've got his scent!" Ray exclaimed as he took off running.

"No, it's this way!" Maya shouted as she ran in the opposite direction. Unfortunately, Kai had managed to scatter his scent too well and the werewolf couple ended up running around in circles. They finally stopped and looked hopelessly at each other, wondering how they were going to find him now. Just then, they heard the sound of leaves crumbling and they turned around to see Nya and Lloyd standing before them with determined faces.

"I can find him," Lloyd stated.

Meanwhile, miles away, Kai was running away from his parents when suddenly his Jōhō showed him Lloyd leading his parents and sister straight to him. It would only take them no more than five minutes before they reached him.

"Stop right there, traitors!" Kai suddenly spat venomously, his voice carrying over to them from a long distance as if he was right beside them, causing the four werewolves to come to a halt. "You're supposed to be on my side! Our side!"

"Kai please, you don't know what you're doing!" Lloyd pleaded as they all looked around, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from.

"No! You don't know what you're doing, helping them! This is who we are! This is what we're meant to be!"

"Kai, listen to me!" Maya pleaded.

"No, you listen!" He snapped. "You lied to us! You knew about Jōhō and withheld it from us! You withheld my birthright!"

"I'm sorry! It's my fault!" Ray cried. "Come out and we'll talk about it!"

"That's all you ever do!" He laughed bitterly. "Talk, control, and manipulate us!"

"Kai! That's not true! Maya exclaimed.

"How would you know?" He scoffed. "He's got you under the thumb as well!"

"Don't you talk to your mother like that!" Ray snapped. "Everything this woman does she does for you!"

"Woman!?" Kai roared "She's not supposed to be a woman! She's supposed to be a werewolf!"

"You don't understand, Kai! Jōhō is dangerous, it's addictive!" Nya warned.

"More lies! Jōhō is our birthright and I'll use it how I please!"

"Well, that's just it, you're not using it, it's using you!" Lloyd shouted.

"Come and get us then." Kai finally said and everything went silent.

"Kai! Wait!" Maya cried as they began following Lloyd again. They followed him to the main road on the other side of the forest, only to stop when they saw Kai had leaped onto a pickup truck, laughing and mockingly waving goodbye to his family. They wanted to chase after him on foot, but they were all too exhausted from chasing him through the forest.

"We've lost him." Nya whimpered as the pickup truck disappeared over the hill with her brother.

Kai laughed heartily as he left his parents, sister, and friend on the side of the road. He relaxed and leaned back into the truck as he quickly went back to exploring the bright, lively world with the power of Jōhō. He was having the time of his life. He didn't know what his mom and dad were so worried about, he loved his wolf and his powers, especially Jōhō. If he could he would live out in the forest forever, with no rules and no responsibilities.

He was a werewolf and he deserved to live like one, in the forest where he belonged.

He suddenly screamed when pain unlike anything he'd ever felt before started ringing in his brain. He clutched his head and tried to focus his Jōhō on where the pain was coming from, but that seemed to make the pain worse. The last thing he saw was the shadowy outline of some overhead power cables above him before everything went black...

* * *

Back on the side of the road, Ray, Nay, and Lloyd were sat on the grass while Maya, being the only one with enough energy to do so, had run back through the forest to get the car. The two teens and one adult sat in silence for a few minutes before Lloyd suddenly cleared his throat.

"I'm so sorry, Mr, Smith." He said. "If I'd known this would happen I wouldn't have let Kai near Jōhō."

"What I don't understand is why you're not going crazy with it." Ray frowned.

"Maybe it's in my genes, my dad being wild and all," Lloyd suggested.

"Well, I appreciate you helping us." He said. "Any trouble you get into, missing school, we'll come up with something to explain it."

"Thanks." Lloyd smiled and they descended back into an uncomfortable silence.

"Dad, why are you so scared of Jōhō?" Nya suddenly asked and Ray sighed in defeat. If Lloyd's mother weren't going to tell him then Ray would.

"Do you remember how your father ran away when you were a baby?" He asked and Lloyd nodded. "Were you ever told the reason?"

"No, my Mom and Uncle Wu refused to talk about it." He sighed.

"He ran away because she discovered Jōhō," Ray said. "When he learned the skill, it was all he talked about, all he cared about." He sighed. "He didn't have any time for his family anymore and then he just vanished one day; Misako and Wu had no choice but to call the police, but as far as they were concerned, he was just another runaway father, but we knew better."

"He went wild," Lloyd suddenly said as his voice cracked.

"As far as he was concerned the humans were cruel and heartless beasts and so he fled to the only place where he truly felt at home."

"So you were worried the same thing will happen to me and Kai?" Nya asked and Ray nodded as Maya finally arrived with the car. They all piled in and they speed off in the direction the truck went.

"Where exactly are we going?" Maya asked desperately. "He could be anywhere."

"Just keep going," Lloyd instructed.

"Can you see him?" Nya asked and he was about the answer when a sudden high pitched whirring sound filled his ears as he clutched his head and cried out in pain.

"Get us away from those pylons!" Was the last thing he heard before everything went black...

* * *

The first thing Kai felt when he finally regained consciousness was the sharp ringing pain that was pounding around like a hammer in his skull. It was bad enough to make him throw up and pass out again. It was a miracle he remained conscious. The second thing he noticed that he was still in the back of the pickup truck that was now parked outside some construction site in the neighboring city of Swiftvale. Clutching his head, Kai slowly climbed out of the truck and started stumbling through the city.

His Jōhō was still partly active, however, and the city sounds and electricity started screaming in his head.

While he was trying to ignore his disorientating state, he failed to notice he had caught the attention of a gang of four boys a little older than him. The leader of the gang was wearing a white shirt with a wolf head on it with the slogan 'Werewolves are cool'. They all shared a look and smirked as they started to follow the oblivious Kai. Kai walked through the city for a few more minutes before the pain became too much and he had to stop.

Dropping his backpack, Kai slumped to the ground just inside a dirty alley.

Seeing that he had stopped, the leader motioned for his gang to waited and he went to talk to the young werewolf. He slowly sat down, but Kai barely gave him a glance.

"You don't look happy, been homeless long?" The leader asked casually and Kai shook his head. "I'm Danny."

"Kai."

"What you running away from, Kai?"

"I don't know anymore," he admitted as tears gathered in his amber eyes. "I don't even know why I'm here and my head really hurts."

"Maybe you need some food," Danny suggested. "I'd get you a burger or something but... I'm broke."

"I've got money," Kai said without thinking.

"Yeah?" Danny smirked and Kai didn't need to be a werewolf to know something was seriously wrong. "Where? In your backpack?" He asked and Kai nervously backed away in fear...

* * *

It didn't take Ray, Maya, Nya, and Lloyd to arrive in the city. Lloyd had managed to wake up but he was still very disorientated and he looked awful. Nya and her parents examined the city as they drove over the speed limit. It was a miracle an officer hadn't pulled them over yet. They desperately looked for any sign of Kai or the pickup truck.

"Stop the car!" Nya suddenly screamed. "That's it! That's the truck!" She pointed to the truck parked nearby, but there was no sign of Kai.

"Where's Kai? Can you see him?" Maya asked Lloyd but the blonde boy could barely concentrate.

"Let's get him to a park, closer to nature," Nya said and they pulled up outside a small park near where the truck was parked. Quickly, the parents carefully helped Lloyd out of the car and walked over to a grassy hill further into the park.

"Come on, we've got you."

"Please, Lloyd," Ray begged. "If you're in this state imagine how he feels." He pushed and Lloyd slumped onto the grass and tried to use his Jōhō, only to cry out in pain.

"I can't do it here." He whimpered. "I'm sorry."

"Try again!" Ray snapped.

"Ray, enough." Maya glared. "You're torturing the boy."

"Our son's out there in pain!

"I know that! Let me try!" She said as she knelt down and attempted to use Jōhō, but was unsuccessful. Ray ran his hand through his black hair in frustration as he paced around. Seeing that this wasn't going to help them find Kai, Ray ran back to the city to find his son.

"Stay there," Maya instructed the two teens and followed her husband. The two ran into the city and quickly found the truck again. They took a deep sniff and picked up Kai's scent trail. Sharing a determined look, the parents followed their son's scent. Meanwhile, back in the alley, Danny was slowly closing in on Kai further into the alleyway.

"Where are you going? There's no way out down there." Danny smirked as he whistled for his gang to join him in trying to intimidate the spiky-haired teen.

"Leave me alone!" Kai snapped.

"Just give me the backpack and you won't get hurt." Danny sneered and on reflex, he let out a human growl at the gang. "Are you growling at me? He's growling at me!" They all whooped in laughter. Kai took a relaxed breath, finally turning off his Jōhō just as Danny reached out to try and grab the rucksack off him. Kai snapped his head up, growling wolfishly and baring sharp fangs, flashing his yellow eyes. They all screamed and turned to run just as Ray and Maya ran into the alley.

It only took them a second to realize what had happened.

Their instincts immediately took over and their eyes also turned yellow.

"Get away from our son!" Maya snarled as she and Ray backed the four boys into a corner.

"Like werewolves, do you?" Ray asked, noticing the slogan on the leader's shirt. "Well, they don't like you!" He angrily claimed and let out a savage roar, causing the gang to flee the area screaming. Once they were gone, the werewolves regained their human features and the parents turned to their runaway child, who whimpered in relief as he ran to the older werewolves and hugged them tightly.

"I'm sorry, I am so sorry." He sobbed into their embrace.

"It's OK, baby, you're safe now, you're safe." She reassured as they hugged their son even tighter. Kai smiled as he pulled away from the hug and gave his parents a teary smile.

"I am never using Jōhō again."...


	13. Burning Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Still haunted by her experience with the beast, Pixel presses on with her investigations. Meanwhile, with the annual Amare  
> festival rolls in Zane plan to ask Pixel to go with him but things get a little... heated...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING!  
> This chapter will include alcohol use and implied sexual content.  
> READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!

Ever since the incident with Jōhō, Lloyd had rarely talked about his father around the others, feeling guilty for Kai's sudden wild act. Tomorrow was the annual Amare festival and everyone was getting ready for the festival. Every year, the entire city held a festival and a big dance for someone to find and enjoy the day with their special sweetheart. Jay hummed a happy song in his head as he tried to pick the right outfit to wear for school.

He finally settled on a pair of finely striped, cotton trousers that reach down to just above his lace-up shoes, all of which were colored a dark blue.

They were paired with short, moderately dotted socks colored vanilla. A cream long-sleeved shirt was carelessly hanging over his trousers and covered with a narrow jacket. A light orange tie neatly rested in the middle of his unbuttoned jacket. As he left his room, he saw his parents sat at the table, enjoying their breakfast.

"Oh Jay, you look so handsome!" Edna smiled and gave her son a big hug. "Why are you all dressed up?"

"He's trying to impress someone special." Ed snickered as Jay blushed a bright scarlet.

"Dad." He whined loudly while his parents chuckled.

"You're a very nice boy son, any girl would be lucky to have you."...

* * *

Pixel hissed in frustration as she rummaged through her giant closet, trying to find something to wear. With the festival being tomorrow she was hoping that she and Zane could go together, so she had to be smart. She picked out a glittering violet tank top with black pants and dark purple. shoes. As she exited the closet she cried out when she suddenly tripped on a mythological creature's book. She was still hunting for her beast in the forest.

She was about to put it away but decided she would finish reading it at school.

"Pixel, breakfast is ready," Her father, Dr. Cyrus Borg called up to her room and she quickly rushed downstairs. When she entered the kitchen she saw her father serving up some eggs and bacon before returning to his laptop. Cyrus Borg had a gray suit and black sweater, jet black hair usually combed over to one side, and crow's feet around his silvery-blue eyes which had gray glasses. He was born with no feeling in his legs, leading him to spend his life in a regular wheelchair.

When Borg saw what his daughter was holding he scowled.

"Are you still looking up monsters, dear?"

"There's something out there Father, I know there is!" She argued.

"Oh yes, and I suppose it's the same monster as your werewolf friends?" Borg counted. He loved his daughter but he greatly worried about her physical and mental health, especially when she started accusing her own friends of being werewolves.

"Well... I..."

"I rest my case!" The man sighed before rolling off to see to his work. Pixel just kept her head down and ate her breakfast silently...

* * *

That afternoon Lloyd and all his friends were in the school cafeteria, trying to enjoy the slop they were served. While the girls were in the line, Zane and Jay shifted nervously in their seats, unsure what to do. They really wanted to ask Pixel and Nya to the festival tomorrow but they didn't know how or when to do it. The second the girls sat down Jay and Zane stopped fidgeting and smiled at them.

"So, you guys looking forward to the festival tomorrow?" Lloyd asked.

"No." Morro glared at his lunch tray.

"Why not?!" Jay exclaimed.

"The Dobsons are setting me up with a blind date with some friend's daughter or something." He sighed as he took a bite of his lunch. Only now eating was the last thing on his mind and he stood up to go dump it in the trash when suddenly the end of his shirt got caught on something and he tripped, spilling his food all over Pixel's head. The only human in their group let out a scream and rushed out of the cafeteria. Everyone, believing he had done it on purpose, turned to glare at Morro.

"What the heck Morro?!" Cole exclaimed.

"I-It was an accident, I swear!" He cried and turned to the others with pleading eyes. But no one said anything and Zane dashed off after Pixel. He quickly heard her sobbing in a nearby restroom as he heard the sound of running water. Knowing he can't go inside, he gently knocked on the door and the sobbing stopped.

"Pixel, you OK?" He called and the door opened slightly to reveal a teary-eyed Pixel with wet hands and soaked hair.

"I'm fine." She sniffed.

"Come on Pixel, you can't fool me, I'm sure it was an accident." He smiled.

"I guess, but I think he really hates me." She sighed as she stepped outside. Zane paused in thought. It was true that Morro was still a little anxious about them hanging out with a human, let alone someone who came so close to discovering their secret, but he was certain Morro was over all that.

"Why?"

"I-I don't know, I've just been so stressed lately." She admitted. "What with school, my father, planning on asking if you wanted to go to the festival with me and hunting for the beast." She rambled, only to blush when she realized what she just said, but her's was nowhere near as bad as Zane's was.

"Y-You were?" He gulped and Pixel took several deep breaths to calm her racing heart before she nodded. "For what it's worth, I was planning on asking you too." He chuckled weakly.

"R-Really?!" She gasped, looking deep into his eyes.

"Yeah, I mean, we're good friends and I like hanging out with you." He blushed madly. When Pixel didn't say anything he looked up and his blush was redder than one of Kai's jackets when he saw her walking closer to him, ready to kiss him. Just when their lips were seconds away, he closed his eyes and waited... but nothing happened. Zane opened his eyes and he saw Pixel looking down nervously. She really did want to kiss him, but she was too scared.

Of what, she had absolutely no idea.

When she saw he was staring at her, she took off running, leaving him standing in the hallway...

* * *

For the remainder of the day, neither Pixel nor Zane spoke to anyone and they avoided each other like the plague. After school, Lloyd and the others went to the blonde boy's house to help his family out with the festival's preparations. The only ones not there were Pixel and Zane. Morro was there too, but none of them paid him a second thought, still thinking he spilled his food on Pixel on purpose.

"Has... anyone heard from Zane? Or Pixel?" The lone wolf finally asked.

"I'm surprised you care." Kai glared.

"How many times do I have to say I'm sorry and it was an accident!"

"Oh come on! You don't want her and Zane to spend time with each other anyway, why don't you just admit it?!"

"Fine!" She screeched. "I admit I don't like them spending time together but I'm just worried about our secret; what if he tells her and she doesn't take the news well and tells the world about us?!"

"Do you seriously think she'd do that to us?!" Cole snarled. Jay just groaned and went back to helping Nya alone in the kitchen. After a tense moment of silence, Jay finally worked up the nerve and cleared his throat.

"Uh, you know, Nya, everyone's going to be taking, um... dates... to the festival."

"It's funny you mention that." She blushed faintly. "I was gonna ask if you wanted to go with me."

"Really?!" Jay squealed in delight and she giggled at his reaction.

"I'll see you at seven." She smirked before leaving to join the others, leaving Jay alone in the kitchen feeling lighter than a feather...

* * *

Zane sighed as he walked along the busy city streets in the evening. He was relieved that Pixel felt the same way about him but he couldn't help feeling guilty for pushing her too fast. He wanted to go see if she was alright but thought she probably wanted some time alone. He had no choice but to retreat to the city to try and clear his head. He needed something to break the ice with Pixel. Some of the roads and street blocks had been closed for the festival tomorrow.

He suddenly flinched when something shiny reflected in his eyes.

He looked into a store window and his confusion turned to fascination when he saw what was inside the store. Inside was a beautiful amethyst gemstone the size of a grape attached to a silver chain. It was absolutely gorgeous. He smiled as he ran into the store, purchased the necklace, and ran back home. He had just found his ice breaker...

* * *

The next evening Morro was getting ready for his blind date and just hoped he didn't end up regretting it. He just kept telling himself that it was for one night and that's it. He was dressed in black pants, plain black shoes, and a loose-fitting dark green shirt. He was slowly getting annoyed with Mrs. Dobson's constant hovering, making sure everything was perfect for the arrival of his blind date. He couldn't wait until this night was finally over.

Suddenly there was a knock at the front door.

"Oh that's her, now remember Morro, best behavior." Mr. Dodson warned before answering the door and Morro could only stare in shock. Standing in his doorway was the one and only Harumi Jade. The crimson red dress she was wearing left her shoulders mostly uncovered and it flowed down into a fancy sweetheart neckline. It was a loose fit which removed the focus from her breasts but without making it look sloppy. Her arms had been covered fully.

The sleeves started out loose and tightened towards the bottom where they wrapped gracefully around her wrists.

The dress's waist was narrow, but it was a tight fit. A small, stylish black belt was all that is needed as a perfect adornment. Below the waist, the dress fitted snug around her and had a tulip style. The dress reached her knees and she was wearing black fishnet tights. She was wearing black slingbacks, which went hand in hand with this dress. To top it all off she was wearing a small, elegant black hat and large jeweled earrings. Her hair wasn't tied up and flowed down her back gracefully and her face was caked in makeup, with an enraged expression plastered on.

She did look beautiful but Morro also knew what monster lay underneath that beauty.

He looked to his foster parents, desperately hoping they were playing a prank on him. However, the grins on their faces said otherwise.

"Well, you kids have fun!" Mr. Dobson smiled before pushing the two teens out the door...

* * *

When Jay and Nya arrived at the festival, they were starstruck by what they saw. Red, pink and white glittering streamers hung around the entire street with dozens of red rose petals scattered all across the sidewalks, lanterns, and candles giving it a warm glow, the sweet scent of vanilla and chocolate hung in the air and soft, romantic music played in the background. Jay was wearing a black shirt with matching pants and boots and a dark blue tie.

Nya's short dark grey dress covered only a small portion of her shoulders and flowed down into an elegant sweetheart neckline.

Her arms were completely uncovered, which not only helps accentuate her gorgeous tanned skin, it also kept the focus on other parts of the dress. The dress's waist was thin, but it was a slim fit. A cloth cyan blue ribbon had been wrapped around her and tied in a bow at the front. Below the waist, the dress widened and had a trapeze style. The dress barely reached her knees. She was wearing black kitten heels, a perfect choice in combination with this dress.

To top it all off she was wearing an ornate necklace and an embroidered bracelet.

Her hair was curled and she wore little makeup.

"This is beautiful," She said out loud as they walked together.

"Yeah, it is." He smiled gazing lovingly at her.

"So, what do you want to do first?" She asked and he giggled nervously...

* * *

Morro growled in frustration as he watched Harumi casually flirting with a happy stall attendant, completely ignoring his existence.

It had been an hour since they had arrived at the festival and Morro already wanted to go home. Harumi knew this but she didn't care and went on enjoying the festival as best she could. Normally he couldn't care less what she did or didn't do but last time he checked she was supposed to be spending the night with him. When he asked her why her parents had made her come to this blind date she just shrugged. She said her parents made her do this, saying this would make up for when she framed him at the art exhibition.

Spoiler Alert: It didn't.

Seeing that she wasn't going to give him any attention, Morro went to look for the others without saying anything to Harumi. He saw Jay and Nya tearing up the dance floor and decided to leave them be. It didn't take him long to find Kai, Cole, and Zane. They were all sat next to a snack bar and Morro could tell straight away that Kai and Cole were off their faces drunk. They must have smuggled some alcohol in, thankfully, however, Zane was sober.

Although Morro saw the distant, sad look in his icy blue eyes.

He was still broken up about what had happened with Pixel but Morro still thought it was for the best. He didn't believe humans and werewolves could be in a romantic relationship without sharing the secret. As soon as Zane saw the lone wolf, he glared and walked away. Morro was about to follow him but suddenly there was a loud crash. In his drunk state, Kai had fallen over and knocked into some tables laughing loudly while Cole was shushing him trying to hold in his own giggled.

Knowing he couldn't leave them alone like this, Morro went to help them, vowing to talk to Zane later.

It took Zane at least 10 minutes of aimlessly walking around until he came to the park. Thinking a walk through the quiet park would calm his nerves, Zane made his way through the tranquil space. Everything was fine until he suddenly found Pixel sat alone on a bench, watching couples walk past with a sad smile. He couldn't help but marvel at her. The bright violet dress she wore left her shoulders mostly uncovered and flowed down into a fancy sweetheart neckline.

It was a tight fit and her arms had been covered to only just below her shoulders.

The dress's waist was narrow, but it was a slim fit. It was left simple, elegant, and undecorated, creating a look that flowed from top to bottom. Below the waist, the dress fitted rather snug around her and had a wrap style. The dress reached just below her knees and was slightly longer at the sides and back of the dress. She was wearing glittery white open-toed shoes, which matched the dress perfectly. To top it all off she was wearing a simple, but stylish opulent bracelet.

Her hair was done up with lovely makeup all over her face.

Taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, Zane slowly walked over to her.

"Hey." He smiled as he stepped up to her. "Is this seat taken?"

"No." She sighed and he quickly sat down. "I thought you weren't coming?"

"I wasn't, I didn't want to come alone, I'd rather be here with... someone." He smiled, blushing, and he reached into his back pocket.

"Really? Who?"

"I'd rather be here with you." He replied and showed her a white box made to look like it'd been perfectly wrapped. She opened and gasped when she saw the silver necklace with an amethyst jewel Zane had brought earlier.

"It's beautiful." She gasped as Zane gently took it out of the box and placed it around her neck.

"I thought you'd like it."

"Like it? I love it!" She laughed and he blushed brighter. She started moving in again to kiss him and Zane felt his cheeks burning. Just as their lips brushed against each other, Zane looked past her shoulders and saw Morro watching them fearfully. After Nya and Jay had gotten tired from dancing, he had left her brother and ole with them and went to look for Zane. As soon as Zane pulled away from Pixel she opened her eyes and moved back, confusion clear on her face.

It was then he realized that Morro was right.

He couldn't date Pixel until she gave up this beast obsession, for her own sake as much as his.

"Zane? What's wrong?" She asked, slightly hurt.

"I-I'm sorry, I can't..." Was all he could force out before he suddenly dashed away, leaving a heartbroken Pixel in his dust...

* * *

Kai groaned in pain as the morning sun peaked through his blinds and into his closed eyes. His head was still banging from last night, it felt like someone was using his head like a drum and using ice picks from the drumsticks. He could hardly remember anything about last night. The last thing he could vaguely remember was him and Cole sneaking away from Nya and Jay, who were too busy watching the fireworks to notice them.

After that everything was a blank.

Groaning, Kai sat up in his bed and he rubbed his sore head and tired eyes. He was never drinking again. As he opened his eyes, however, he made a disturbing discovery. This wasn't his bedroom. Looking around, he nearly screamed when he saw Cole fast asleep in the same bed. He quickly backed off the bed, falling to the floor with a heavy thud and taking the covers with him. It was then he saw that they were both completely naked, with their clothes scattered around the room.

Kai also took note that everything below his waist was aching, but he hoped that that was just from him falling off the bed.

Before Kai could gather his thoughts, however, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Panicking, he threw the covers back over Cole and dove under the bed just as Lou opened the door. The man gave the room a look over and found nothing but his sleeping son. Rolling his eyes, thinking Cole just knocked something over in his sleep, the human closed the door again. Once he was sure Lou was gone, Kai carefully crawled out from under the bed and stared in shock at Cole, who had failed to wake up during any of this.

"Oh shit."...


	14. The Camera Never Lies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harumi and the pack each try to make their own short film to enter into a contest at the Ying Yang cafe...

It had been close to a week since the Amare festival and almost everyone in the pack had butterflies in their stomach. Most for different reasons though. Jay and Nya had finally become a couple, but they had agreed to keep it secret, mostly from Kai. Her brother had relationship issues of his own, however; when he woke up naked in Cole's room with a hangover, it didn't take him long to figure out what had happened. Before Cole had woken up Kai had gotten dressed and climbed out of the apartment through the fire escape.

He never mentioned what had happened to anyone, especially Cole, who seemed to have no memory of the drunken incident.

In truth, however, Cole did remember spending the night with someone but he couldn't remember who. When he finally woke up he saw that he was alone in his bed and when he asked his dad, Lou said he had been asleep when Cole came home and when he checked on him there was no one else in his room. With that, Cole just shrugged it off as a wet dream. Zane's love life wasn't going so great either. Pixel wouldn't even look at him since he sort of stood her up at the festival.

When they found out Morro had ditched Harumi, his foster parents had grounded him, again.

Right now, Lloyd and his friends were sat in the cafe, watching the small TV with all the other kids from their high school. Pixel was sat on her own on the other side of the cafe. After what had happened at the festival, she couldn't be around Zane right now. On the TV was a pair of boots running across a sandy beach. The camera then moved up to reveal a little toddler in the boots before ending.

"'Big Boot's To Fill' by Jay Walker and the winning entry for last year's junior filmmakers' contest." Burke chuckled as he turned the TV off and started handing out flyers for the contest.

"If we're going to win this thing we need to know all the rules," Jay said.

"Forget the rules." Kai grinned confidently. "It's a short film contest, we make a short film, how hard can it be?"

"Last year they rejected an entry 'cause it was seven seconds over three minutes," Cole replied and Kai's smile dropped.

"OK filmmakers, this year's theme is heroes!" Burke announced to the crowd. "And thanks to Harumi Jade's father, the very generous and wealthy Richard Jade, this year's prize money has doubled!"

"So your Dad's judging and sponsoring? I wonder who's gonna win?" Chad sneered.

"If you're implying that you're an automatic loser then I'll second that." She smirked at him.

"Why does Harumi's Dad gets to judge?" Morro glared.

"Probably because he's putting in all the money, and he's a local hero too," Nya said and pointed to the picture of Harumi's father standing proudly by a yellow mountain bike hung up on the wall behind the counter.

"Oh yeah, that's the bike Mr. Jade used to ride all the way the forest, over the mountains and back in record time and the record's stood for 15 years," Zane explained...

* * *

When Harumi had got home that afternoon she saw that her mother was out and her father was in his office, talking to his secretary. Harumi and her family lived in an actual palace. Her great grandparents bought it and refurbished it into a home. Legend says it belonged to a great king as a stronghold long before anyone came to this land. Five strong, round towers surround the castle, they reached twice the height of the walls and were connected by huge, chunky walls made of grey stone.

Stylish windows were scattered generously around the walls in seemingly perfect symmetry, along with overhanging crenelations for past archers and artillery.

Now they sat empty and for looking out to the city. A great gate with heavy wooden doors and various artillery equipment that once protected those in need of aid stood at the front of the castle. Huge statues of heroes and kings decorate the bridge outside, memories of glories of the past. This castle had clearly stood the test of time and its current inhabitants were intended on making sure it stayed that way for ages to come. When her father was finished talking to the secretary, he started typing something on his laptop.

She took a deep breath and walked in.

"Hello father, I've got you something." She smiled and held up a disk, but he just put his hand up to silence her. She sighed and went over to the TV nearby and put the disk in. He stopped what he was doing when he saw some pictures of him and all his achievements appear on the small screen.

"What is this?" He asked.

"I tracked down some old photos and articles of the day you rode through the forest and over the mountains in a single day." She smiled when she saw she had his attention. "It wasn't easy finding these."

"To beat that record I had to dodge wild animals, unstable terrain, and total exhaustion; I broke it by thirty-five minutes." He smiled, ignoring her again.

"I got these paper articles from the library archives, took me hours." She said, her smile slowly fading.

"Can't beat natural grace." He continued with a smug smirk on his face. "You know my record will still be standing in the next 15 years."

"Somebody might break it."

"There's no way; those mountains are a battlefield these days, nobody will ever break my record and I'd kiss the feet of anyone could pull off what I did then and keep all of his bones intact."...

* * *

The next day the group of werewolf friends all met up at Jay's junkyard to talk about their movie for the contest. Nya was running late so they just started without her.

"OK, I've spent half the night watching movies about heroes, and what do people love?" Jay grinned but they all just shrugged, confused.

"Action and thriller, and I've got the best idea." He smiled and pulled out a video camera from his backpack. "We get some real-life footage of the deers around the forest and use that as our hook to draw the audience in!"

"Why deers?" Zane asked.

"I just saw the movie Bambi, it was so cute and beautiful, yet sad and thrilling at the same time!"

"Great plan Jay, but how are you gonna get the video?" Cole asked. Jay smirked and looked at Kai, Cole, and Morro.

"Me?! No way!" The lone wolf glared.

"Why can't you do it?" Kai asked.

"Me, Zane, Lloyd, and Nya have plans and besides Zane, you three know the forest like the back of your hands," Jay explained, but they weren't budging. "Come on guys, we'll lose otherwise!" He whined.

"Can't we just pick another idea?" Cole suggested but one look at the others told him that they didn't have another idea.

"Please!" The freckled boy pleaded as he put on his best puppy dog face. All three boys winced and looked away...

* * *

Kai sighed in boredom as he and Cole wandered around the forest looking for deers, each with a camera in hand. They just couldn't say no to that face when Jay used it on them. They decided to not tell Nya because she would freak out, or worse, tell their parents. As they walked in silence, Cole watch suddenly beeped. He answered it and Jay's face popped up.

"Hey guys, how's it going?" He asked with a smile.

"Oh great, other than the fact we're about to be trampled to death so you can win the competition again," Kai growled as he walked forward and Cole hung up. He watched as Kai stormed ahead. The hothead had been acting weird all week and whenever he asked him about it, the brunette got very defensive and changed the subject. They soon found themselves in front of a small herd of deer calmly wandering around grazing as their young ran around.

They didn't seem interested in the two teens so they took cover behind some trees and started filming.

Suddenly, Kai made a wrong step and ended up stepping on a stick. The snap echoed throughout the silent forest and every deers' heads shot up before they took off running into the forest, their thundering hoofs rattling the forest. Kai and Cole shared a nervous look but decided that they had gathered enough footage so they headed home...

* * *

Nya smiled as she walked along the warm beach just next to the city, collecting shells. She didn't know where the boys were so she decided to take some time to herself. She groaned internally when she saw Harumi walking up to her with a big, toothy smile.

"Hello, Nya." She smiled.

"What do you want?" The female werewolf glared.

"I know we haven't always seen things eye to eye in the past but I have an idea." She said. "I take my Father's original mountain bike, I reenact his trip around the forest and the mountain, I break his record and you film the whole thing."

"A reenactment? So it's not even original?" Nya smirked.

"It's a tribute; you'll be capturing a moment in history, especially if I beat his record; can you just do me this favor?"

"Me doing you a favor? One problem, I don't like you." She said coldly.

"Fine." She snarled. "If you do this I will give you all the clothes from Opal Essence's newest collection, which has yet to be released to the world." She offered. That got Nya's attention. Within the next hour, Nya and Harumi were on an isolated road that led into the forest, getting ready to make history. While Harumi was getting ready Nya was attaching a camera and a tracker on her father's bike. Harumi didn't tell Nya how she got the bike without anyone noticing.

"What are you doing?" The lead cheerleader asked when she saw Nya attaching something to the bike.

"Jay showed me how to do it." She replied. "This waterproof mini-camera is gonna send images directly back to me in the motorcycle."

"Good, I don't want the filming to slow me down." Harumi smiled as she got suited up and Nya climbed onto her own bike.

"Let's do it!" Harumi exclaimed with a wide grin as she took off on the mountain bike. Nya gave her a bit of a head start before revving up the engine and following her into the forest. However, just as they were halfway to the mountains Nya suddenly cried out when the front wheel of her bike got stuck into the muddy road and came to a stop, causing her to fall forward and into the ground. After a moment of frozen fear, she sat up and saw Harumi disappear in the distance.

The raven-haired teen tried to call her but the earpiece was busted.

She tried moving her bike but it wouldn't budge. She couldn't run after Harumi without raising suspicions. She was stranded in the middle of the forest...

* * *

Morro sighed in boredom as he walked around the forest, just on the edge where the forest met the base of the mountain. Jay had sent him, Kai, and Cole out to gather more footage for their movie. They had split up but Morro had been unsuccessful in finding anything to film. He was about to go home when his enhanced hearing suddenly picked up something. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw a large stampede of deers running his way.

Morro quickly moved out the way and pulled out the camera Jay had given him.

As he was getting ready to start filming he noticed the shadow of something moving along the road along on the mountain overhead. He looked up and his eyes widened when he realized it was a mountain biker. Who the heck would be biking around the mountain at this time of year? All the rain and the windy weather made the condition too dangerous. However, his confusion turned to utter horror when he saw the stone ground give way under the biker.

The biker screamed as they tumbled down the side of the mountain and into the path of the stampede.

The biker looked up and Morro gasped when he saw it was Harumi Jade. The cheerleader took a few seconds to comprehend what just happened. One minute she's beating her father's record, the next she's falling down the side of the mountain. She attempted to contact Nya but all she got was static. She growled in annoyance and looked around for the other girl. All she could see was the tall forest trees and rocky mountains. Just when she was about to give up she thought she saw something moving towards her and she smiled, thinking it was Nya.

But all color drained from her face when she saw the large stampede racing towards her and the bike.

She tried to get up but she cried out in pain, clutching her ankle. She must have twisted it in the fall. Seeing a ditch just ahead of her, the petrified cheerleader quickly crawled over it and out of the way just in time. The herd just missed her and trampled on her father's bike, crushing it. Harumi ducked her head down, but it did nothing to help as a few of the deers' hoofs knicked her back and head.

"SOMEBODY HELP ME PLEASE!" She screamed as tears fell from her eyes.

Upon hearing Harumi's screams for help and seeing the deers almost crushing her, Morro transformed into his wolf and rushed to the rescue. He had to think fast. He couldn't let her see him but he could let the deers kill her either. He ran up to the ditch, dodging hoofs, and stayed just behind her. He bared his teeth at the deers and started snapping at them, causing a few to move away from him and the cowering Harumi. The human could hear the snaps and snarls but she was too scared to look up and get kicked in the face.

After a few minutes, the herd started to thin out, lessening the danger to Harumi.

Satisfied that the deers were gone, Morro gave Harumi one last look before running away, just as she finally looked up. Harumi fearfully looked around in shock. She honestly thought that she was gonna be trampled to death when, out of nowhere, a dog appeared to protect her, scaring the deers away. As she tried to get her head around what had just happened she heard a motorbike nearby. She looked over and saw a concerned Nya coming towards her.

The raven-haired girl had only just gotten her bike out of the mud again and was on her way to catch up with Harumi.

She was shocked to find her in a ditch, covered in dirt and faint bruises, scared half to death.

"T-T-There were d-d-deers everywhere! I thought I was gonna die!" She sobbed as Nya helped her onto the bike. Nya looked around in confusion as she grabbed the pieces of the crushed up bike.

"I don't see anything?"...

* * *

It took them nearly an hour but they finally made it back to the city. They got her ankle checked out and thankfully it wasn't anything serious, it just needed some rest and an ice pack. When they finally made it back to Harumi's house and calmed the terrified cheerleader down the two girls decided to take a look at the footage from the mountain. Harumi had changed her clothes and was snuggled in a blanket while drinking some hot chocolate with her foot resting on a cushion.

She and Nya were in Harumi's room, watching the footage.

Unfortunately, the camera had fallen off when Harumi fell off the bike and it didn't catch any sign of the deers and the fall had damaged the camera, meaning there was no sound either, meaning they had no proof of any deers or the supposed dog that saved her. All they saw was Harumi freaking out in the ditch. Suddenly Richard Jade burst into the room with a look of fury on his face.

"I've just spent the last hour talking to John about the bike you stole, he was ready to go to the police." He glared.

"It's your bike, not his," Harumi growled back.

"Wait, you stole it?!" Nya gasped in shock, before grinning. "OK, maybe you should have asked first but this footage fantastic, it'll make a great film."

"You can't do that!" Harumi exclaimed.

"I sponsor that competition!" Richard glared. "Do think I want my daughter on the public view looking like a fool?!"

"There were dozens of deers father!" Harumi defended.

"Did you see anything?" He asked the other teenage girl.

"Well, no but-"

"Didn't think so." He huffed. "Harumi created this charade because she knew she could never really beat my record, now get rid of that tape!" He ordered.

"Oh, I don't think so Mr. Jade, I shot that footage, so technically that disk belongs to me." She grinned smugly before grabbing the disk and walking out of the Jade family's castle...

* * *

On the night of the competition, everyone in town was gathered in the Ying Yang cafe to see what all the contestants had come up with. They were all laughing as they watched the final video. It was Lloyd and his friend's video of Harmui freaking out in the ditch. While they may have used Nya's video footage, they had added the death music from Bambi and every so often the video would cut to the footage of the calm deer Kai and Cole had taken.

Close to the end, Jay had edited footage of a super dog saving Harumi from the calm deer.

Everyone couldn't stop laughing. Harumi was beyond embarrassed as some of the audience members would turn to look at her. Her father kept giving Nya and her friends a death glare as everyone laughed at the footage of his daughter's expense. Morro turned to glare at Nya.

"You think that's funny?!" He hissed in a whispered voice so no one would hear them.

"I think the audience is the best judge." She chuckled with the crowd laughed.

"Nya, I was there." He confessed, much to her shock. "Who do you think scared away the stampede that was gonna stamp her to death? Harumi isn't acting." He said as the film ended and everyone applauded. But Nya wasn't smiling anymore.

 _ **"So, congratulations to you all for another fantastic effort! Now it's time to announce our winners!"**_ Burke smiled into the mic as one of the judges handed him a sticky note.

 _ **"And the winners are Jay Walker and company!"**_ He announced and everyone in the cafe applauded them as the group of friends stood up from their table to collect their awards. Instead of smiling, Nya had a guilty look on her face as she kept glancing at Harumi. As they sat back down the judges handed Burke another note.

 _ **"And the award for best actor goes to Harumi Jade!"**_ He exclaimed. Harumi silently got up to accept her trophy. But once she had it in her hands, instead of sitting back down, she quickly walked out of the cafe, much to everyone's confusion and amusement. Morro gave Nya one last glare before going after the cheerleader...

* * *

Morro followed Harumi's scent out the cafe, through the city, and into the park, where he found her standing in the moonlight at the large lake, glaring at the trophy in her hands. She was debating whether to keep it or throw it into the cold water below. She was so caught up in her thinking that she didn't notice Morro casually walking up to her.

"You were good." He smiled, making her jump, but she quickly recovered.

"Acting you mean?" She glared.

"No, I meant all that stuff about biking around the mountain and everything else." He replied with his usual grin. "It a lot took guts to do that at this time of year." He added. her eyes scanned him cautiously, looking for any sign of hate in him, but all she saw was a real concern and slight pride.

"Well, you're the only one who thinks so." She said weakly, returning her gaze to the trophy. She was about to say something when suddenly she felt something wrap around her shoulders. She looked up and was shocked to see Morro had given her his winter jacket. She could just stare at him in shock, no one had ever been that nice to her, not even her own parents. Morro said nothing and gave her one last smile before running back home...


	15. Think Pink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Pixel makes a comment about Zane being ordinary, he misunderstands and thinks she's saying he's boring. Deciding he needs a change, Zane asks Nya to dye his hair but is horrified with the results...

Zane smiled as he took a family's picture for them in front of the dolphin exhibit while he waited for Nya. He had recently gotten a job at the local aquarium; he didn't really need it but he needed something to take his mind off all the drama that had happened this year. He had just finished his shift and was waiting to meet up with Nya but she seemed to be running late. Just as he snapped the picture he felt someone tap his shoulder and smiled when he saw the girl in question grinning at him.

"You coming?" She grinned and they started heading for the exit.

"Zane, wait!" A woman called out. They quickly turned around and saw Zane's boss jogging over to them. "I was hoping to catch you before you left." She smiled. "I was hoping you'd be able to cover for Jake later today?"

"Of course." He replied.

"I knew I could rely on you Zane, you're very reliable with no surprises." She smiled before quickly leaving to see to other things.

"Was that a compliment, or an insult?" The pale teen asked once she was out of sight. Nya just shrugged and they continued on their way...

* * *

Later that afternoon, after hanging out with Nya, Zane was walking alone along the beach. He couldn't get what his boss said out of his head. All around him were families and friends running around, enjoying the sun and the waves. Just as he turned away from the sea, he saw Pixel sat on a deck chair nearby, just staring out to the ocean.

"Pixel!" He smiled and he ran up to her. As he got closer he felt a sense of joy when he noticed that she was wearing the amethyst necklace he had given her at the festival. "What are you doing?"

"Thinking." She frowned, not even looking at him.

"About what?"

"Just some stuff." She sighed. "Like how you keep thinking I'm a fool."

"What do you mean?"

"One second you and I are best friends, the next we're nearly dating, and then we're almost strangers!" She glared, making him flinch slightly.

"Pixel, I want to date you but I've got a lot on my plate right now." He tried to reason.

"Like what?! You're the same, ordinary kid! The only thing that's changed since Morro arrived you and the others have been treating me like crap!" She glared before storming off. He wanted to run after her but he had no idea what to say to make it right. Zane just sighed and headed off home...

* * *

"Are you sure about this?" Nya asked nervously as she and Zane came into her bathroom. When Zane had come to her with an insane request she was very worried but slightly honored that he had come to her and not someone else; although she doubted she would do as good as a job as a professional hairdresser.

"Yeah, even Pixel said I was a boring, ordinary guy, so I want to add some colour to my life." He frowned as he sat on a high stool and she wrapped a towel around him.

"I know you want I change, but this is a bit extreme!"

"Nya, please, just do me this little favor." He pleaded before she eventually gave in and got to work. Within twenty minutes there was a sudden knock on the door and they both froze.

"Who is it?" Zane asked and they both were ready to run with the door opened, but they both relaxed when they saw it was just Kai.

"If you're going to ask who it is you should consider locking the door, what's going on?" He asked what he saw what was going on. Nya smiled nervously as Zane rolled his eyes.

"I'm dying my hair, let's just get this over with." He groaned as Kai examined the box of hair dye that Nya had already applied to Zane's currently platinum blonde hair, they were just waiting for it to set.

"Are you sure you want to go with this color: Hot Pink?" He asked.

"WHAT?!" Zane cried as Nya snatched the box back. "YOU SAID IT WAS DARK RED!"

"Oh shit, must have grabbed the wrong color." She gulped. Kai couldn't help but chuckle. Nearly an hour later, Nya and Kai were at a loss for words as they gazed at Zane. The dye had finally set and they were very, very worried about Zane's reaction; Nya was more hesitant to tell him than Kai.

"Well?" Zane asked nervously and his two friends shared a look.

"Well, you're about as pink as a flamingo." Kai suddenly blurted out, only to cry out when Nya jabbed him in the ribs. Zane quickly grabbed a nearby hand mirror and almost screamed. All his hair was a bright blossom pink.

"I'M PINK! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?!" He screamed.

"Look, we have to dry your hair and get back you to normal as soon as possible, it was supposed to dry lighter." She offered weakly as she grabbed a hairdryer off the shelf.

"It'd better!" He glared. "I wanted a change but this is!"

Suddenly there was the sound of a phone buzzing. Zane pulled out his phone and nearly cursed.

"I need to get to work!" He cried as he got up and grabbed his jacket.

"What about the pink hair?" Kai asked.

"I don't know, but I gotta get to work, we'll talk about it later." He said before dashing off...

* * *

Pixel sighed in frustration as she walked through the unusually empty park. This whole situation with Zane and their relationship had her wanting to pull her hair out. She really liked Zane and didn't know what Morro had against her, but ever since he had arrived, her best friends were getting further and further away. She knew that Morro had issues and that he was apparently Lloyd's distant cousin, but that still didn't excuse how he treated her.

He never outright stated that he hated Pixel, but it was always implied.

From the snide remarks and poisonous looks, especially when she was with the others, Pixel was confident in the knowledge that he hated her. She wondered if that was the reason Zane and the others were distancing themselves from her. They didn't want to hurt Morro. She could understand why Lloyd wouldn't want to hurt Morro's feelings, but not the others. Pixel groaned as she ran a hand through her hair. This was all giving her a terrible headache.

She decided to go do some beast hunting in the forest, that always cheered her up...

* * *

Zane groaned in pain as he walked back home after an exhausting day at work. He had been doing a lot of heavy lifting today and now his back had to deal with the consequences. He had been wearing a hat all day to hide his bright pink hair, getting some strange looks from co-workers and customers in the process. Next time he wanted a change, he would just change his clothing style. Thankfully no one had noticed his pink hair, or if they had they hadn't said anything.

He had just gotten a text from Jay saying he and Nya would meet Zane at his house, to which he agreed to.

The pink-haired teen planned on asking Nya to undo her mistake as soon as he saw her. Wincing as another wave of pain shot through his back, Zane suddenly got an idea. He could get home much faster if he ran through the forest in wolf form. Taking a quick look around, he walked into a secluded part of the forest and transformed. Leaving his clothes behind, the now pink wolf ran off into the forest. Unbeknownst to him, however, he was not alone in the forest.

Pixel sighed as she investigated through the deep forest, but it seemed that the beast was not around today.

She was close to Zane's house, but choose to ignore that and focus on the beast. There was no proof that there was anything in the forest but the young scientist refused to give in. She had to try. She could feel that she was on to something, something big. She was serious and seemed to have a desperate look in her blue eyes as she scanned the area. Due to recent events, she couldn't stop thinking about the creature that scared her as a child.

It was out there and she refused to give up.

Meanwhile, Zane kept his eyes peeled for people as he grew closer to his home. As he tore through the forest he glanced at his paws and came to a sudden stop when he saw that his fur was pink instead of its usual white. He growled in anger but decided to do something about it later. He looked around and his yellow eyes lit up when he saw his home in the distance. Without thinking, he took off in the direction of home. Unknown to him, Pixel was close to his house as well.

Believe that her beast wasn't here she had decided to see if Zane was home so they could straighten their relationship out once and for all.

As she got closer to the house, however, she stopped when she heard that sound of running feet. She was about to turn to see what it was when suddenly a flash of pink dashed past her. Pixel quickly looked around and for a brief second, she saw something big, furry, and bright pink disappear into the trees, but it was moving too fast for her to make out what it was. Thinking it was the beast, she took off after it, but it was long gone...

* * *

As soon as Zane got home, he had all but demanded Nya fix his hair back to its original color. He had no idea Pixel had caught a glimpse of him in wolf form. It took an hour but they were able to reverse Zane's pink hair to his platinum blonde color. While she was doing that, Kai had told the others, minus Pixel, about Zane's new color, much to the quiet boy's shame. They had all been sworn to secrecy, however. As the pack made their way towards their usual hangout at the cafe Kai couldn't stop cracking jokes about Zane's pink hair.

This of course earned him death glares and the occasional slap upside the back of the head from either Nya or Lloyd.

Thankfully he stopped by the time they arrived at the cafe, and it was a very good thing too. When they entered they saw that everyone was gathered around Pixel, listening to their latest find in the forest. The gang didn't think anything of it and got their usual drinks and sat in their booth at the other end of the cafe, listening in from afar; but what they heard next shook them to their core.

"I'm telling you this was more than just a shape or shadow, I saw the beast, it moved as fast as lightning and had pink fur!" She exclaimed as everyone in the cafe look spectacle. The gang all looked at Zane and saw the poor boy was on the verge of a serious panic attack. He should have sensed Pixel was there, it was a careless mistake. Luckily no one seemed to notice his panicked state.

"I'm going back out there," Pixel added with a determination that scared the others; they had heard all this before, but it was the way she said it that scared them to their very core. "This is real, and I'm gonna prove it who's coming with me?"

"Oh for fuck sake Pixel." Harumi groaned in boredom. "You've been saying this for years! Give it a rest already!"

"I think your brain's finally cracked." Chad laughed cruelly and Pixel stormed out. Once everyone went back to doing their own thing, Lloyd and his friends leaned in to discuss.

"They saw you, how?" Nya hissed.

"Must have been when I was coming home, I was careless and an idiot." He groaned.

"Hey, don't beat yourself up about it," Kai reassured. "I mean look around, no one's gonna believe her."

"She's not gonna let it go either and now she knows her beast is near your house." Morro frowned.

"Yeah, but the tunnel to Zane's den is well hidden and as long as no one transforms from now until the next full moon, she'll eventually move on," Jay suggested but the others didn't seem confident in that plan. Zane didn't say anything as he set his icy drink down and suddenly dashed out of the cafe, startling his friends...

* * *

Zane ran as fast as he could until he found Pixel on the boardwalk, staring out into the ocean again. This had to stop before she discovered something dangerous to Zane, his friends, and herself. He came to a sudden stop and almost slammed right into her. She was startled at first, but when she saw who it was she turned to walk away.

"Pixel wait!" He called out.

"What?" She glared and he flinched slightly.

"Look, I do want to go out with you." He started and he winced when he saw a glimmer of hope in her eyes. "But the monster talk has to stop, that's the deal, take it or leave it." He said and he could almost hear the gears turning in her head as she thought about his offer. She didn't want to stop looking for her monster, but she also loved Zane. Maybe if they dated long enough, he would see how much this meant to her and maybe even help her again.

"OK, no monsters in the forest." She smiled before pulling him into a kiss...


	16. In Too Deep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Zane and Pixel announce that they are a couple, his friends are worried that Zane has too much trust in Pixel and that he is putting their secret in danger. Are they right?...

Zane and Pixel laughed as they walked through the mall with their favorite flavored ice creams. The two of them had been happily dating for two weeks and most people weren't shocked by this news. Most of the other kids at school had even placed bets on whether they would or wouldn't date. Zane's friends, mostly Morro, were worried that the human would figure out he was the pink creature she saw and tell the world about their secret.

But Zane dismissed their fears.

He was enjoying his time with Pixel and he truly felt like a normal teenager again. Pixel suddenly leaned in for a kiss, only for them both to freeze when they heard a splat. They slowly looked down and saw that Zane's strawberry ice cream and collided against the human's purple blouse. Zane panicked at first, but it melted away when he heard her laughing.

"Bad move." She laughed as she wrapped one arm around his shoulders and playfully raised her own ice cream up to his face. "Say you're sorry."

"No." He laughed as he leaned away from the icy treat.

"Then accept the penalty!"

"No!" Zane laughed again as he broke free and the two ran around the mall until their ice creams had melted and they quickly threw them out.

"So, what are you doing later on?" She asked and he just shrugged. "Do you wanna come out to the forest?"

"Maybe another day." He replied with a nervous chuckle.

"You always say that." She frowned before smirking. "You never know, we might see a beast."

"Pixel, forget about the beast, I'm not coming out to the forest!" He glared.

"Why?" She growled. "What is it with you? Why you always so secretive?"

"I-I just don't like the woods." He lied to his girlfriend when his phone suddenly beeped. "I gotta go, I'm supposed to be at work now." He said before dashing off...

* * *

Morro frowned as he made his way towards Zane's house. He was angry and worried when Zane told them that he and Pixel Borg had started dating. He had been worried because the human had already claimed that some of their friends were werewolves and she said that she'd seen Zane when he was in his other form and had been dyed pink. Morro believed that he was being reckless and stupid. When he knocked on the door she was surprised when Jay Walker opened the door.

"Hey Morro, what's up?" He smiled.

"What are you doing here?"

"Zane was supposed to help me with our science project."

"Is Zane home? I want to talk to him." Morro asked and the younger wolf chuckled.

"You mean you want to talk him out of dating Pixel." He corrected and Morro dropped his head in shame. Jay didn't say anything and let the lone wolf inside and into the living room. Dr. Julien was working on something in the kitchen. He gave the boys a smile and a wave before returning to his work.

"I-I know I should be happy for him but I'm worried for him." Morro sighed.

"I know the feeling," Jay replied and pulled out an old book from a nearby bookshelf. He flipped through the pages and stopped on two pages that showed a group of teenagers around their age. Morro gasped when he saw Ray and Maya as teenagers in the picture.

"Who are they?"

"Our parents." He replied with a sad sigh and pointed out a couple on the far left. "They're my biological parents." He added.

"Really?" Morro asked as he examined the people in the picture. The woman in the picture looked almost exactly like Jay except for her long blonde hair and stormy blue eyes. The man she was cuddling had jet black hair, dark brown eyes, and Morro could make out the beginnings of a mustache.

"Is that Cliff Gordon?!"

"Yeah, he was my dad."

"What happened? How did you end up ina junkyard with human parents?"

"My mom, Libby, was a werewolf and I inherited my powers from her." He explained. "My dad was human, he didn't have a clue what my mom was even when they were married and had me; she, and the rest of our parents were just like us, it was exciting, unbelievable, magical; they shared the secret and the adventure, I don't have to tell you how special it is." He smiled at the lone wolf, who smiled back.

"So, what were they like?" Morro asked as they flipped through the pages.

"Well, I'm told my Mom was very headstrong, like Kai, and my Dad was always confident, like Cole." He chuckled. "All our parents were always close until they found out that my Mom suddenly decided she wanted to tell Dad everything." He sighed.

"Why did she want to do that?"

"She saw how happy Lou and Lilly were without secrets and when they had me I guess Mom felt she had to be honest with Cliff, they had been married for three years at this point." He frowned. "The others tried to stop her but she wouldn't listen, and she told him everything; at first, he was very upset and he went away for a few weeks; then one day he called, wanted to meet."

"I guess he got over it?" Morro asked but Jay's face told a different story.

"She thought she could trust him, she thought he understood she's so terribly happy and so terribly wrong."

"What did he do?"

"He wanted to expose her to the whole world." Jay spat with so much hate it honestly scared Morro.

"What?!"

"She went to meet him in the forest in her wolf form, only for Cliff to surprise her by pulling out a camera and snapped some photos of her; luckily, the others arrived just in time and destroyed the camera, putting a stop to Cliff's plan." She glared. "He tried telling everyone about us but people made a mockery of him, no one believed him."

"Sounds like Pixel."

"Apparently my Mom closed up after that, she never really got over the betrayal; I think it was some sort of eye-opener for her," Jay admitted as he drifted off into his own thoughts. "The grief was so bad that her wolf went crazy and one day she vanished, just like Garmadon, with no other option Wu gave me to the Walkers and swore them to secrecy."

"Do you think the same thing will happen to Zane and Pixel?" Morro asked fearfully.

"I don't know." He admitted. "But I do know that he needs us, he doesn't know how much but he does, good luck." He smiled weakly. Morro smiled before giving the younger boy a hug and ran off to find Zane...

* * *

"So how are things between you and Pixel." Cole smiled as Zane walked through the marine park with two buckets full of fish for the dolphins. While Cole was worried about his friend dating Pixel, he knew that Zane was stupid and would be careful.

"It's great, I don't think I've been more relaxed since Morro arrived." He replied. "...and I told her I was her 'monster in the forest'."

"WHAT?!" Cole screamed but flinched when few people looked over at them.

"Kidding." He laughed.

"That's not funny." He frowned.

"Why not, it's my secret!"

"No! It's OUR secret!"

"Can we talk about something else? What about your mystory one-night stand?" Zane asked.

At first, Cole had thought he had been dreaming until after the film contest he was taking a shower and found scratched in the back of his shoulders. After Zane had examined them Cole finally realized that he had spent the night with someone and whoever it was had left before he woke up. He thought that he would probably never see that person again and so he tried to forget about it. That was when the dreams started. In his dreams, he was doing it with someone.

He never really got a good look at the other person in his dreams, however, Cole had only noticed their soft tanned skin and stunning amber eyes that he could easily get lost in.

Another thing that had shocked him was the fact he somehow knew the person he was with was a man. It wasn't unknown to almost everyone that Cole was bi but this was the first time he'd ever been with a man before. Until he found out who the mystery man was, Cole simply called him 'Amber', for his eyes. When he told Zane about it, the older boy suggested that maybe his subconscious was trying to remember who his mate was.

Cole didn't know how he knew that Amber was his mate, but he was Cole's, and the raven-haired boy had finally come to the realization that he was very attracted to the man in his dreams.

It irritated him that he couldn't focus on Amber's face. In the dreams, Cole had begun to notice that Amber's mouth seemed to be mouthing words, but he couldn't hear him. Cole also found Amber's scent to be enticing, the smell of cinnamon, and burning pine. The lovely scent seemed so familiar and yet Cole couldn't seem to place it. Cole had searched his bedroom for clues but the only scent he could pick up on was that of his friends.

For some reason, Kai's deodorant was more prominent than the others, but Cole just shrugged it off.

"Forget it!" Cole huffed in annoyance, a faint blush on his cheeks, and turned to leave, only to cry out when he suddenly slipped on some water from a nearby exhibit and fell face-first on the floor, causing everyone to burst out laughing loudly. Zane went to help him but Cole just sent his friend a look and walked away...

* * *

Zane and Pixel laughed as they sat outside the cafe with Kai sat nearby, feeling like a third wheel. He had gotten a text from Cole, asking him to keep a close eye on Zane, but after an hour of stalking the couple, he didn't know what to do other than looking around, trying to find a way to escape. It was then he noticed an angry Chad storming over to the happy couple.

Before Kai could say anything, the jack violently grabbed the werewolf and dragged him away from the cafe.

"What on earth is your problem?!" Zane snapped as he pulled himself free.

"You bastards made me lose tons of money!" He snarled. Chad was one of the few people to bet against Zane and Pixel becoming a couple and now he was paying the price for it.

"You did that to yourself." Kai glared. Chad hissed at the hothead and turned to the young couple, only to smirk when an evil idea formed in his mind. He grabbed hold of the necklace around Pixel's neck and snapped it off. She gasped and tried to grab it back as he laughed as he dangled it in front of her.

"Give it back Chad!" She shouted as a confused Cole and Morro came up to them and stood by Kai.

"Sure." The bully smirked and extended the necklace out to her, only to pull it back seconds before Pixel took it and flung it into the water of the fountain next to them with a cruel laugh. "Oops." He smirked before pushing past them. As Chad walked away, Cole had to restrain Kai to prevent him from attacking the jock, even if he wanted to do it himself.

"I'll get it for you." Zane suddenly said and started taking off his jacket and shoes before jumping into the water. He moved his hands around the fountain's water until he smiled and held up the necklace. He climbed out of the water and ran over to his girlfriend. He happily held out the dripping wet necklace to her and she took it back with a loving smile.

"Pixel, there's something I want to tell you." He suddenly said and the other three boys felt their blood go cold.

"What is it?" She asked. Morro was about to rush over and stop this but Cole and Kai stopped him.

"I just wanted to say that I'm... the luckiest guy in the world to have up." He smiled and they shared a kiss. When they finally parted, Pixel saw the shocked and relieved looks on Cole, Kai, and Morro's faces...

"What's going on, you're all acting weird," She asked as he stepped back and she put the necklace back on. The boys shifted in their spots for a few moments before Zane's amused chuckle broke the silence.

"Nothing, nothing at all." He smiled at his girlfriend...

* * *

Later that day, Zane was sat in his room with Cole, Kai, and Morro, all of them laughing and joking about the day's events. Morro saw Zane's father looking in on them and the old man gave them a knowing smile before walking away. After about ten minutes of laughing, Zane finally regained his breath.

"You didn't honestly think that I was gonna give up our secret to Pixel, did you?" He asked them and they all shared a nervous look, causing him to laugh even harder at their expressions. "You did? Come on guys, where's the trust?"

All they could do was laugh with their friend. Soon night came in and it was time for them all to get home. After Cole had dropped Kai and Morro off at their homes, he had driven all the way to his, however, as he was getting out of his car, he suddenly froze. For a brief moment, he thought he could smell Amber's intoxicating scent, just for a moment though.

He took a deep sniff but the smell was gone again.

Cole frowned at this but didn't do anything except parking his car and head up to his apartment, vowing to get to the bottom of this...


	17. Caged

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's another full moon tonight and a beast-hunter named Iron Baron enlists Pixel and Dareth to help him track down the beast of Ninjago's forest...

Once again another full moon was upon Ninjago City and the pack was walking on eggshells. After what's happened during the last full moons, with Nya, Lloyd and Jay stranded on an island and with Kai and Cole being arrested everyone was waiting for something else to go wrong. Hopefully, the third time around would go smoothly for once. It was so tense that even Dr. Julien was locking the tunnel from his house into the forest, meaning the boys couldn't transform and ran into the forest.

Kai was dreading it.

After he nearly lost it in the police holding cell, the others had been helping him with his claustrophobia but he didn't think he was ready to spend an entire full-moon locked up.

"Misako's freaking out about tonight." Nya suddenly said as they walked down the hall, shocking her brother out of his thoughts.

"After the past two full moons, can you really blame her?" Cole asked.

"Mom says we've got to be there by five," Lloyd told Morro and Nya as they were staying with him during the full moon.

"So does Zane's dad." Kai sighed.

"That's hours till moonrise!" Morro cried, he had been hoping to get some last-minute running before he was locked away.

"Yeah, well, we don't want to take any chances this time." Jay reminded as Zane and Pixel approached them.

"Hi!" The human smiled, her arm looped around Zane's. "My father's out tonight so I was thinking we could go see a movie?"

"I'm sorry Pix, but me, Cole, and Kai's got some studying to catch up on." Nya lied.

"My Mom's making a big dinner tonight and is expecting Morro and me to be there," Lloyd said and Morro nodded in agreement.

"My Dad's not feeling well, sorry." Jay excused.

"Zane?" Pixel asked weakly and gave her boyfriend her best puppy dog eyes. Zane quickly looked away and desperately tried to come up with an excuse but he failed to find one.

"S-Sure Pixel... where else would I be?" He chuckled nervously, trying to avoid the glares the others were giving him.

"Great! I'm just going to return this book to the library and will talk about what to see." She smiled before she gave him a kiss on the cheek and walked away. As soon as she was out of sight, the others boxed in Zane before he could escape.

"You do know the cinema doesn't allow dogs?" Jay exclaimed.

"I panicked." He defended. "The only thing I could think of was, 'Sorry, we will be locked in the basement turning into wolves'."

"You should probably work on your excuses." Kai groaned.

"I can't just make up lies on the spot." He pouted just as Pixel returned.

"Listen, Zane was just saying how he can't make it tonight." Morro suddenly said before anyone could even blink. Pixel was taken aback by this while the others, mainly Zane, sent the lone wolf death glares.

"Why?" She asked and Zane gulped.

"Because... I just remembered... I have to stay in and... help Father with... curtains." He blushed while Kai and Jay attempted to hold in their laughter, getting slaps to the back of the heads from Nya.

"Curtains?" She asked in disbelief, clearly not believing her boyfriend.

"He is really into crafts all of a sudden." Zane quickly added. "I said I would hold them while he...sews."

"Can't he do it another time?"

"He's got a deadline, I'm so sorry."

"Oh, OK." Pixel sighed before the bell suddenly rang and she speed-walked away from the group and Zane felt the guilt crushing his heart.

"See? You can do it." Morro smiled, but no one else was...

* * *

As soon as school was finished, everyone said their goodbyes for the night and went their separate ways. Kai and Zane all piled into Cole's car and drove straight to Zane's house just as it reached 5 pm. Grabbing their overnight things, the teens ran into the house and shut the door just as Dr. Juilen came out of the kitchen, carrying the bags of meat for downstairs.

"Finally." He sighed when he saw his son and his friends.

"We're early." Cole frowned at the man's tone.

"Just."

"We came straight from school," Zane explained. "It just seemed to take longer."

"I know; too much to see, too much to smell." Kai drooled as he reached for some of the meat, only to get his hand smacked away by Dr. Julien.

"Wash your hands first." The old man chastised. Kai grumbled as Julien walked away and Cole and Zane laughed at his expense. Zane then left to see if his father needed help, leaving Kai and Cole alone. Once he was sure they were alone, Kai pulled Cole closer.

"You know, we don't have to do this." He suddenly said.

"What?"

"Stay here." He replied and Cole just rolled his eyes. "I don't care how our parents try and justify this, it's still a cage, it's still unnatural!"

"We all agreed, we promised everyone." He reminded the hothead. "I thought you were OK with that."

"Yeah, that was when the wolf seemed a long way away." He admitted. "Now, that room feels half the size it normally does."

"I know what you mean."

"It was fun the last full moon, out there, all of us together."

"It was... It was a rush." Cole confessed. "It was..."

"It was right." Kai finished. "Outside in a pack is where we belong."

"The only reason we transformed outside last time is that we ran out of time." Coe reminded him. "Our parents won't let that happen again."

"They can't stop us if we don't let them."

"Kai, I won't go against them," Cole stated and Kai growled.

"So, for the rest of our lives, we'll just spend the one night we should we running wild, locked up?" He snapped.

"No!" He argued. "This is only until our parents are confident that it's safe again to let us run wild in the forest during a full moon and until then we stay." He insisted before walking away. Kai watched him leave before growling in frustration. As soon as he had calmed down, he went down to the basement where the others were already waiting.

Dr. Julien was just locking the door to the tunnel as he stepped inside.

"Don't worry." He smiled when he saw the nervous look on Kai's face. "No-one can get in and we're not getting out."

"We are going nowhere, until we've got fingers again, obviously." Zane smiled.

"Great! You've done a really good job." Cole grinned.

"It's very...secure," Kai mumbled, breaking into a cold sweat. Cole noticed this, but choose not to say anything...

* * *

Pixel sighed as she sat alone at her usual spot at the cafe, bored out of her skull as she read a book. She would have gone beast hunting but she had promised Zane she would stop. She didn't believe a word Zane said about helping his dad with cushions but she also knew Zane wouldn't tell her what was wrong. She could only hope that with time he would trust her enough to tell her what was going on. She knew the others were in on it but they weren't telling her anything either.

She was so wrapped up in her own little world that she failed to see Dareth walking over to her.

He was carrying a small video camera.

"Oh, Dareth!" She cried when she finally noticed him. "What are you doing?"

"My pops found this old camera in the attic so I wanted to try it out." He shrugged with a big grin on his face. "What's up with you?"

"Nothing." She sighed. "It's just I wanted to go to the movies with the others and they all completely blew me off, even Zane gave me some stupid excuse; what is it with everyone today?"

"Must be the full moon." Dareth joked but winced when he saw the pained and embarrassed look on her face. "Sorry."

"It's fine." She sighed and returned to reading her book.

"What you doing now then?"

"Well, I was planning on going to a metallurgy exhibit later tonight." She replied. "Fancy coming to the exhibition with me?" She asked and he pulled a face. "What's wrong? Don't you find it interesting?"

"What's so interesting about it?" He asked. "That they took what looks like the most boring words in the English language and made them into a sentence?"

"Well, I've always been fascinated by this stuff." She replied. "It's just the beast in the forest took up most of my brain."

"Now you're free to really get your nerd on?"

"Exactly." She smiled. "I wasted all that time on the beast when I could have been charting the development of metallurgy during the 19th century." She said and Dareth just rolled his eyes. Just then a tall, strange-looking man walked into the cafe and his eyes scanned the area. He was unnaturally pale with bright brown eyes, bald, and a small black beard and mustache. He wore a smart black suit complete with a tall top hat and a pegged leg.

"Is one of you named Pixel Borg?" He asked and Pixel nervously raised her hand. He smiled and walked over to her and Dareth. "My name's Iron Baron, I've come a long way to find you."

"Thanks." She gulped, a little freaked out. "This is Dareth." She introduced but the man brushed her friend off.

"We're short on daylight, so I'll come straight to the point; the beast is in my sights and you're the girl to help me find it." He smirked much to the two teens' utter shock. "I've been monitoring your blog for the last six months, your findings are pretty compelling."

"Why didn't you leave any comments?" She frowned, becoming more suspicious.

"And open up myself to replies from fools with no brains and even less imagination?" He scoffed.

"I know exactly what you mean." She muttered thinking back to everyone who mocked her and didn't believe her, including her own boyfriend.

"I'm searching the woods tonight and I need an expert; what do you say?" Baron asked and Pixel thought about it. Sure she had promised Zane she would stop all this monster hunting, but he wasn't here. He never had to know.

"Tell me more." She insisted and Baron smirked.

"12 years ago, I was the kid no-one believed, I saw something too, an animal, a creature, really." He explained. "I was walking where I'd walked 100 times before and that day, there it was; before I could get a good look, the monster attacked me and ran away, took my leg with it, I've never seen anything like it before or since." He growled, unconsciously rubbing his pegged leg as he remembered the pain that the monster had caused.

"You never saw it again?" She asked, feeling very bad for the man, and he shook his head.

"For a while, I tried to convince other people I'd seen it, too, I don't need to tell you how that went." He laughed bitterly. "My parents practically measured me for my own straitjacket; I know how it feels when the people you rely on most don't believe you."

"Have you seen other things? Other creatures?" Dareth asked, but yet again he was ignored.

"There's more out there than even you and I know about," Baron stated as Pixel listened in fascination. "So, Pixel, if you would do me the honor of being my guide, tonight, I will find your beast for you."

"I would be delighted." She smiled and within the next hour, Pixel, Iron Baron, and Dareth were driving through the dark forest, looking for the best place to spot the beast. Dareth had insisted on coming along, refusing to let Pixel go away with a strange man into the depths of the forest at night, where no one could hear you scream. He had his camera at the ready, just in case Baron tried something and they needed evidence to report to the police.

As they drove, Baron had introduced them to his niece, Faith Hunter.

Faith had the same unnaturally pale skin tone as her uncle with cold black eyes and long black hair tied back in a ponytail and she had a large scar-like tattoo over her left eye. She was wearing a dark brown leather jumpsuit with a necklace made up of large teeth from hunted predators. While Baron, Pixel, and Dareth were in Dareth's car, Faith was driving a truck right behind them. Dareth gulped as he nervously looked at the three beast hunters, hoping that Pixel knew what she was doing...

* * *

It wouldn't be long before the moon rose and while Zane and Dr. Julien were putting the final touches down in the basement, Kai and Cole were waiting upstairs, counting down every dreaded second. Kai was sat on the couch, playing video games on his phone while Cole was pacing around the living room, biting at his fingernails anxiously. He didn't tell Kai but he was also fearing spending the night locked up. Neither he nor Kai had spent a full moon locked up before.

Ever since their first transformations, they had always transformed here and spent the night running free in wild.

Cole thought he'd be fine with this, but now he was going crazy. His inner wolf needed to be free, not locked in a cage.

"What are you doing?" Kai finally asked, even though he knew the answer.

"I don't know, I can't stand still." Cole groaned just as Dr. Julien and Zane returned from the basement with satisfied smiles.

"OK, the water's in bowls, wolf snacks are in place and all the doors and windows are locked," Zane explained. "No-one's getting in or out tonight." He added and noticed the disheartened expressions on Kai and Cole's faces. "You two OK?"

"Yeah, just a bit twitchy," Cole mumbled.

"If there's something going on you better tell us now, we're running out of time." Dr. Juilen said, pointing to the clock. The two shared a look before Kai sighed and stood up.

"Why are we doing this? Didn't we have a great time last full moon?" He asked and the father and son looked away.

"You know why not, it's not safe for us out there at the moment." Dr. Julien replied. "Remember when you two and your family transformed so close to the city?"

"We were fine!" Cole insisted.

"No, you were lucky!" Zane snapped. "What if you'd got shot at by a farmer? Or you'd walked into a poacher's trap?"

"All it takes is one person to spot us and then they'll hunt us down, it's what they do." Dr. Julien explained sadly. "Tell me you boys understand that." He pleaded.

"I do." Cole sighed in defeat.

"Me, too," Kai mumbled as he sat back down.

"Good, that's the end of it." Zane sighed in relief. Before anyone could say anything else, Dr. Juilen's phone buzzed, signally it was time for the moon to rise and for them to be in the basement. As they walked down the stairs, Kai and Cole shared a look, it wasn't glare or a scowl, it was just a look.

"Our first time spending the entire night inside, I feel like I should make a speech." Dr. Juilen joked as they stepped into the basement.

"You had better make it quick if you don't want to end it growling." Zane laughed along with his father.

"Come on you two, the moon won't wait." Dr. Julein chuckled when he saw Cole and Kai nervously standing in the doorway. Zane turned to them and saw the sad, almost apologetic looks on both boys' faces.

"Cole? Kai?"

"I'm sorry," Cole said and suddenly shut and locked the basement door with Zane and Dr. Juilen inside. The father and son banged on the heavy door, demanding to be let out, as Cole removed the key and placed it on the floor.

"Are you sure about this?" Kai asked.

"No, so hurry before I lose my nerve." He admitted and with that, the two of them ran back upstairs, out the house, and into the forest just as the moon started rising in the inky sky. They soon arrived at a deep part in the forest, somewhere safe to transform, and not a second too soon. Before they even had a chance to catch their breath, both boys suddenly gasped as their bodies changed. It was over after a few moments. They shook off whatever loose clothing was still on their wolf bodies and stretched their muscles.

They were about to run into the forest when their noses caught something strange.

Something... delicious...

* * *

The group of beast hunters drove deep into the forest until Iron Baron ordered Faith to stop the truck at Pixel's instruction. Upon realizing that he had a camera, Baron hired Dareth to film their hunt, promising to give him a good check for his work, providing he did a good job that is. Once they stepped out of the truck, Faith went around the back while Pixel pulled out a map to show Baron.

"A few weeks ago, the beast was circling the area." She explained and pointed to the spot where they currently were. "Farm animals and pets were going missing so I tracked it to this area."

"It's between two farms, prime hunting ground, good job." He complimented and she blushed slightly. No one had ever encouraged her beast hunting work before, not even her own father.

"Anything I can do to help?" Dareth asked.

"Go do your job," Baron replied cold. Both Pixel and Dareth frowned at his tone but didn't say anything as Dareth got in position and started filming.

"So, Iron Baron, tell us what's going on." He said in an uninterested tone.

"This is Pixel Borg." The man said and she awkwardly waved to the camera. "Pixel is on the trail of a creature known locally as The Beast, she's brought us to the exact spot where we stand the best chance of seeing it; the full moon is about to rise and the creatures of the night are coming out to play."

"Very poetic." Faith commented as she pulled a large, metal box out the back of the truck.

"What is that?" Pixel asked.

"A secure container, harmless but inescapable," Baron smirked. "We're going to catch The Beast." He told them and Pixel and Dareth's mouths fell open in shock.

"I didn't bring you here so you could catch it." Pixel glared.

"This is for our safety." Faith snapped, but a look from Baron shut her up.

"Indeed, you said The Beast is killing animals; it could easily turn on us if it isn't contained." He quickly explained.

"Then you're going to let it go?" She asked.

"I'm not in the business of caging wild animals, no matter how unusual." He reassured. "We put it in here to get a closer look, that's all."

"That's cool with me, that thing has some serious fangs." Dareth shuddered, remembering when he and Pixel had gone looking for the beast a few months ago.

"I'm sorry." Pixel sighed. "It's just... it just got real all of a sudden."

"That's why I'm here, Ms. Borg; to show the world The Beast is real." He smiled and with that Faith got to work. She set up the cage and pulled out a large chunk of meat they had bought from a nearby butcher. She carefully placed in on a large stump nearby and motioned for Dareth to start filming. Knowing that it would be best not to anger her or her uncle, the wannabe camera did his new job.

Baron got into position and cleared his throat just as Dareth started filming

"Do you know what's great about science? Eventually, it can achieve pretty much anything; just put in the hours in the lab and you can make all sorts of things happen." He grinned and pulled out what looked like a silver gun attached to a canister. "This is bait, a scent engineered at a cellular level to attract the predatory olfactory system." He explained and sprayed some white smoke stuff onto the meat.

"Wow," Pixel muttered as the thick, misty substance blew into the cold Autumn night.

"It will spread and if there is a supernatural carnivore out there, it is going to come running," Baron smirked proudly as Dareth finished filming and they all took cover near the truck, waiting for the beast to appear. They were all hiding there for about ten minutes until they all heard movement up ahead. Smirking, Baron signaled to Faith and she handed him a rifle.

"What are you doing?!" Pixel hissed.

"It's a tranquilizer gun, perfectly harmless." He reassured. "Vets use them all the time."

"Will it hurt it?" Pixel asked.

"No, it'll put it out for a few minutes; everyone, stay quiet." He whispered and aimed the gun. Everyone was frozen, too scared to even breathe when Baron shot a dart and Pixel let out a small gasp as a quiet thud was heard. Before anyone could move, Iron Baron quickly reloaded the gun and took aim again.

"Did you miss it?" Dareth asked in confusion.

"No, there are two of them."

"Two beasts?" Pixel gasped. The gun fired again and another thud was heard. Pixel was about to go over to them but was grabbed by the older hunter.

"They might not be fully under yet." He said. "Let me and Faith get them into the container, safety first." He grinned and he and Faith walked over to where the creatures were shot, Faith dragging the container with her.

"The others are going to be mad they missed this." Dareth laughed as he readied his camera. "Are you OK?" He asked when he saw Pixel was shaking.

"Is this actually happening?" She muttered in shock.

"Yeah, believe it."

"I don't think I can." She whimpered. "What if I wake up?"

"OK, come on," Baron called over to them and the two teens ran over to their two hunters as fast as they could. Swallowing in the lump in her throat, Pixel slowly looked into the crate and she was speechless at what she saw. Fast asleep inside the crate were two wolves. One was a large, completely black wolf and the other was a smaller, dark brown.

They were both curled up together, completely oblivious to what was happening.

"Are they...?" Dareth gasped.

"They're wolves, all this time it was wolves." Pixel finished in shock. "My beast isn't a beast at all."

"How can there be wolves here? They've been extinct in this country for years." Dareth frowned.

"Maybe people just think they died out, maybe they've been here all the time, surviving without anyone knowing." She muttered, unable to take her eyes of the furry animals inside the crate. Baron and Faith turned to Dareth, expecting him to start filming. Unfortunately, he was in as much shock as Pixel. Seeing this, Faith snatched the camera from him and pointed it to her proud uncle.

Sleeping animals were a lot easier to film than angry snarling ones.

"Turns out The Beast wasn't a beast at all," Baron said. "Thought to be extinct in this country, these two wolves have survived, their existence a secret for years until I found them." He smirked and Dareth and Pixel shared a look. Just then they heard the sound of panting and light snarling. They looked into the crate and saw the two wolves were starting to wake up.

They were still drugged, however, and it seemed they didn't properly realize where they were.

"They're waking up, you should let them go now." Pixel said to the two hunters.

"Why would I do that?" Baron laughed as he and Faith closed the container. By now the wolves were fully awake and they were snarling and scratching at the walls, trying to escape. "I'm not going to leave them for someone else to find, am I?"

"So you're keeping them?" Dareth asked in disgust. "As some sort of trophy?"

"For now." He shrugged as he and Faith lifted the crate up and started carrying it back to the waiting truck. "Then I'll sell them off to a zoo or something."

"Why? There are thousands of other wolves in the world!" She exclaimed.

"Not like these, plucky survivors where wolves have been extinct for hundreds of years." He chuckled as they placed the crate in the back of the truck.

"Did you not hear?" Dareth glared as he snatched his camera back. "They're wolves! Not space wolves or zombie wolves! Just regular wolves and this is their home!"

"So go and write a song about it." Faith snapped in impatience.

"Thanks for your help, I couldn't have done it without you." He smirked and the two teens looked away in shame. "The hunt's over and it's way past your bedtime."

"What is wrong with you? You're obsessed!" Pixel roared.

"Yeah, and that means a lot coming from her." Dareth nodded.

"Say goodbye to the puppies, they're going to their new home now." Baron jeered as he and Faith walked to the front of the truck. "Faith, check the map, let's figure a way out of this place and away from these children and then go back and secure the crate." He said. While they were discussing the map, Pixel moved to the back of the truck.

She looked through the air gap in the large crate.

The two wolves were panting and looking at her with desperate, pleading golden eyes. It was like these animals were asking her for help like they knew she cared about them. Before she could do anything, however, Faith was pushing her away from the crate as her uncle tied the crate to the truck. He turned around and smirked at the two teenagers.

"If you're that desperate to save something go sponsor a panda." He laughed before he and Faith climbed into the truck and drove off with the wolves, leaving the teens alone in the forest...

* * *

Inside the crate, Cole and Kai were absolutely terrified. They should have listened to the others, now they were trapped and about to be kept as pets by some psychopathic hunters. They had tried everything they could to get out of the strong crate but it was hopeless. They were trapped. The two of them could only curl up in defeat as they whimpered in despair, waiting for the inevitable to happen.

Unbeknownst to them, a rescue was coming.

After they had gotten over their shock, Dareth and Pixel had gotten into Dareth's car and were driving down a hidden road through the forest. Not too many people know about it, but it was a good shortcut. They had to stop Baron before he took the wolves away. Pixel now saw him for the monster he was. Iron Baron and his niece were glory hunters who only wanted fame and they didn't care what they destroyed to get it.

Baron had taken two beautiful wolves out of their natural habitat to make himself look good and make money and Pixel was not going to let that happen.

Baron laughed like a kid on Christmas as he and Faith drove to the city. These wolves were going to make him rich. Before his rich fantasy could grow, however, Faith suddenly slammed on the breaks. He was about to shout at her, but then he saw Pixel Borg standing alone in the middle of the road with a determined glare stuck on her face.

The hunter rolled his eyes and he and Faith got out of the truck to confront her.

"I'm not moving until you let the wolves go." Pixel stated firmly as she trembled slightly.

"Didn't Mommy and Daddy teach you that we can't always get what we want?" Baron mocked.

"They taught me to stand up for what's right."

"Then they did a much better job than my parents." He sneered. "Go home and make them dinner to say thanks."

"You said you were just like me." She said, tears welling up in her green eyes. "I should have known you were too good to be true."

"Are all teenage girls like this, or just the crazy ones?" He asked his niece who was glaring daggers at Pixel.

"I'm glad I'm not like you." Pixel spat.

"Kid, if your plan was to appeal to my better nature, it won't work." He shrugged. "I don't have one."

"Yeah, that was Plan A." She admitted before smirking. "Plan B was to keep you two talking long enough for Dareth to sneak around the back of your truck and let the wolves go." She smiled as the smug look on Baron's face instantly vanished and he turned around to see Dareth standing by the truck, holing up the camera and waving at them.

"Award-winning footage, Iron Baron; think you might be thinning a bit at the back though." Dareth laughed as he deleted all the footage from the night. Cursing loudly, the two hunters ran around to the back of the truck and roared in rage when he saw the crate was wide open and empty. He looked out into the dark forest that surrounded them and saw nothing.

The wolves were long gone.

They turned back around and saw Pixel and Dareth stand there, proud smiles on their faces.

"You've slowed me down, that's all." Baron spat venomously as he and Faith climbed back into the truck. "I've got the bait, and I'll be back for your wolves." He added before they drove off back to the city.

"He is right about the bait." Pixel sighed after a moment of silence.

"Yeah, I mean wolves can't resist it." Dareth agreed. "Although... since I've got it, it's probably no use to him." He smirked and pulled out the device Iron Baron had used to attract the wolves.

"Very stealthy." Pixel laughed.

"Thank you very much." He bowed before throwing the device into the trees, where they hoped it would be lost forever. "This is for all the wolves out there, howl it with me now!" He called and they both howled into the night...

* * *

Soon the cold morning sun rose and the full moon disappeared for another month. As soon as they had returned to their human form, Cole and Kai wandered through the forest, naked, until they finally found their clothes on the ground where they left them. As they got dressed they couldn't stop thinking about what had happened that night.

They remembered the scent, then it went dark.

When they woke up they saw that man with Pixel and Dareth. He and the woman he was with smelled bad. They had been trapped then released by Dareth while Pixel kept the hunters distracted. They probably owed Pixel and Dareth their lives and they couldn't even thank them. Kai blushed slightly as his mind drifted to his time with Cole in that box.

Even though it was absolutely terrifying, he somewhat felt safe because Cole was there with him.

Just like when they were locked in that prison cell. Soon both werewolves were dressed and were standing in front of Zane's house, trying to gather enough courage to face the music.

"What are we gonna tell our parents?" Kai asked nervously, knowing that when his parents and Nya found out they would kill him.

"The truth," Cole replied.

"Why?"

"Because he could come back! They've got a right to know."

"We're in so much trouble, I think when my parents hear this they might actually eat me alive." Kai groaned.

"When my Dad hears about this I'll be grounded for the next 50 years or so." Cole agreed.

"You could leave them in the den till they promise not to punish you." Kai playfully suggested, smiling when he got a chuckle out of the larger teen. "You sure you don't want to split the blame?" He asked.

"Positive." Cole smiled

"Right, let's get this over with." He sighed and they walked into the house together, hoping the others would go easy on them...


	18. It's Terror Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is a Halloween special chapter!

It was a cold rainy night in Ninjago. It was thundering and lightning loudly as people continued with their daily lives. Suddenly a terrorized group of people burst out of the doors of a haunted house, screaming hysterically. It was the Halloween season and haunted house attraction had been opened for the remainder of the spooky month. The only person left in the house was a girl who worked there. She watched as Harumi and her friends screamed and backed away as a giant TV that was brought to life, slowly came towards them.

The screen was static and it also had glowing red eyes on the screen along with long.

Just before the TV pounced on the poor girls, however, the TV suddenly came to a halt and those terrifying red eyes dulled down. Harumi and the other cheerleaders ran away as fast as they could. The employee rolled her eyes and pressed a button. The TV came back to life and started scaring new people again. Lloyd and the others were also there, except for Cole and Kai. It had been a week since the last full moon and to say their parents were furious was an understatement.

Cole's father was very disappointed in his son's actions and had been ignoring him for a week.

Kai's only saving grace was that his parents weren't around, having returned to their business trips. However, Nya definitely made up for their absence. After giving her brother a black eye, both Kai and Cole were grounded for the rest of the year. They didn't even argue, knowing they had both messed up big time. While the others were freaking out Nya was bored out of her mind. She had read about this haunted house attraction and she honestly thought this was a complete waste of time.

"Oh wow, I am soooo petrified." She sighed sarcastically as the boys jumped at a clown statue popping up.

Pixel gasped as the small trash can that was next to her suddenly seemed to grow almost ten times its normal size and came to life. The trashcan let out a high-pitched roared and began to charge at the group. Zane grabbed his girlfriend's wrist and everyone ran for their lives and into a theater-type room where an old projector was playing old black and white horror movies with horror movie characters were sitting in the theater seats.

They thought they had found a place to catch their breath.

The characters, that they first thought were statues, suddenly jumped to life started moving towards the pack, but it didn't stop there. A horror samurai character narrowed his eyes at the teens before lifting his sword and prepared to strike them. Zane and Nya looked to their partners and felt their inner wolves growling when they saw the terror on Jay and Pixel's faces. They had to remind themselves that this was all an act and they weren't in any real danger.

Seeing Nya and Zane were close to losing it, Morro and Lloyd pushed past the horror actors and led the others through some double doors and into a kitchen.

It was full of human body parts and animal head props on plates. To make it even more disturbing, the attraction was pumping the smell of raw meat and blood into the kitchen. Pixel looked like she was going to throw up. Morro, however, was practically drooling. Having to live with vegetarian foster parents meant he had little meat in his diet. That was torture for any werewolf. All the heads on the shelves behind Jay suddenly came to life and started screeching.

Jay cried out as the head began to try and bite him and Nya quickly pulled her boyfriend to safety.

Just when they thought it couldn't get worse, Lloyd suddenly squealed like a schoolgirl at the sight of a horror character from a new movie. It was a horror movie that he had been dying to see that was called 'Wicked In The Forest'.

"WHOA! NO WAY DUDE! Wicked Scary is out on video now?!" He smiled with stars in his eyes.

"I know, it's a new one with an alternate ending and everything!" Morro squealed beside the smaller boy.

"Cool!" Lloyd grinned, but he quickly lost his grin when he noticed the evil look in the monster's eyes. "Not cool." He gulped.

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! IT'S GONNA EAT YOUR OUR BRAINS!" Jay screamed as the hooded monster approached them. Nya had, had enough of this house messing with her friends. She snarled loudly and violently pushed the stunned actor away and onto the floor. Before she could completely lose control, Jay and Morro pulled her off the actor and they all ran for the exit. Soon they had arrived at the end of the house where an employee was waiting for them with shelves full of horror DVDs on sale.

While the others were finally catching their breaths, Jay suddenly noticed something.

"Guys! Check it out, movie night." He grinned and held up the movie 'Wicked In The Forest'. He then walked over to the clerk and showed her the movie. While he was buying the movie, Nya's eyes glanced at the doors that led back into the haunted house, a strange feeling bubbling in her chest...

* * *

Back at Zane's house, Nya was finishing her homework. After they had returned from the haunted house, they had all gone to Zane's for a sleepover and for a horror movie night. Due to being grounded, Kai and Cole were back at their own homes, missing out. Dr. Julien had to work overnight so the kids had the whole house to themselves. The others were up in the lounge getting to watch the movie Jay had bought at the haunted house.

When she finally joined the others, she found them gathered around the TV waiting for her.

She sat next to Morro and saw that there were three big bowls of popcorn and Lloyd was clutching a small bowl full of Halloween candy.

"Pix, are you sure that you don't want some of my treat-or-treating candy?" He asked and offered the bowl to the human.

"Make it go away..." She moaned quietly as she clutched her stomach. She was still disgusted by the kitchen room in the haunted house. Morro rolled his eyes and took a seat on the sofa.

"Ladies and gentlemen, get ready for the scariest night of your lives 'cause this movie is totally gonna freak you out." Jay grinned.

"I highly doubt that." Nya sighed in a bored tone of voice.

"Can't be any more creepy than that documentary on hot dogs Zane made us watch." Lloyd pointed out and the others grimaced.

"It was fascinating, I had no idea that people ate so many pig guts and insects." Zane smiled. Pixel suddenly bolted from the room and gagging could be heard from the bathroom.

"Yeah, big deal! This movie is said to be cursed." Jay replied in a creepy voice. "When people watch it strange things happen, evil things." He cackled.

"Just start the movie." Morro groaned. Jay frowned but clicked play on the remote. Nearly two hours passed and it was now close to the end of the movie. The boys and Nya were sat frozen in fear while Pixel buried her face into Zane's arm and hugging it like a teddy bear. The movie then thankfully came to an end.

"I-Is it over?" Lloyd stuttered as he peaked over from his hiding place behind the couch.

"I dare not open my eyes to find out." Zane whimpered.

"Now I am really sick to my stomach." Pixel groaned. Nya didn't say anything as she snapped out of her fear state. The boys and Pixel suddenly burst out laughing as they recovered from their terror.

"Did I tell you?! Or did I tell you?!" Jay smirked.

"It was wonderfully horrible!" Zane exclaimed.

"I was freaking out! I wanted to turn it off." Lloyd admitted with a goofy grin.

"Admit it Nya, you were totally scared!" Morro smirked at the only werewolf girl present. Nya narrowed her eyes at the lone wolf.

"I don't do fear."...

* * *

Later that night everyone had gone to bed. Being the only two girls in the group, Nya and Pixel were sharing a room on their own while the boys were all sleeping in the same bedroom. It had started raining hard and thunder cackled in the night sky. In her room, Nya was sleeping quietly in her bed when a particularly loud thunderbolt caused her to shoot up with a startled gasp. However, when she looked around she saw that there was nothing there but dark silence and a quietly sleeping Pixel.

She sighed and led back down to go to sleep.

Suddenly a woman's scream echoed throughout the whole building. She and Pixel woke up and ran out of the room and found the others in the hallway, looking as confused as the girls were.

"Who screamed?" Nya asked.

"It sounded like something from the movie, did we leave the TV on?" Zane asked.

"We didn't, and the movie is right here." Jay whimpered in terror and held up the movie. Suddenly the lights went out.

"Ok, that's creepy." Morro gulped as he pulled out his phone and turned on the flashlight.

"The storm probably just tripped a security breaker," Pixel explained. Suddenly she felt something on her shoulder as the others backed away in fear. "Ok Lloyd, you got us." She forced a laugh, think it was one of Lloyd's pranks.

"Uh, Pix." Lloyd gulped in terror and pointed behind the girl. Pixel turned around and thought her heart stopped. Behind her was the main monster from 'Wicked In The Forest'! The monster suddenly launched one of its tentacles at them, but they managed to move out of the way. Nya tried to growl at the monster but was shocked to find that her wolf was gone! So was everyone else's!

"NEW PLAN, RUN!" Zane shouted. As they ran one of the monster's tentacles smack Nya into a wall and the monster suddenly disappeared.

"There was a monster here right?" Morro asked when they saw the monster disappear.

"But where did it go and where did it come from?" Lloyd asked.

"HELLO!? The movie's cursed! Watching it opened a portal to another dimension and it released the monster!" Jay panicked.

"Or someone's playing a prank on us." Pixel said and walked to where the monster was, trying to find some kind of device like a projector. While she was doing that, the others huddled in a circle.

"But that still doesn't explain why any of our powers aren't working anymore," Lloyd whispered.

"It ain't a dark moon is it?" Morro asked and the others shook his head. Pixel walked back over to them, unable to find any proof that this was all a prank.

"Let's split up and check for clues," Zane said, but Jay grabbed him.

"SPLIT UP!? Dude did you not see the movie?! When you split up the monster picks you off one by one! Starting with the good-looking, comic relief guy, ME!" Jay screamed.

"Get a grip Jay, the monster's not gonna eat anybody." Morro groaned.

"He's right, there's nothing to be afraid of,"...

* * *

The team stayed close together as they searched the halls of the large house. Since they had no powers and their cellphones had no signal they were armed with just some flashlights and some stuff they had found. Lloyd had a baseball bat, Morro a crowbar, Zane had a broom, Nya held a frying pan, Pixel clutched a mop and Jay carried a wrench.

 _"Help me... Help me..."_ A little girl's cry came from one of the halls.

"This way," Lloyd said and they ran towards the noise. It was coming from Zane's room.

 _"Help me..."_ The girl's voice called from inside of Zane's closet. Lloyd stepped forward and opened the closet door. They all cried out when they were hit with... a mountain of dirty laundry? Something else tumbled out of the closet as well. It was one of those creepy cymbals monkeys. Zane hadn't played with that since he was a child.

 _"Help me, help me, help me count!"_ The monkey cheered and started counting.

"I really have to get rid of that thing." Zane chuckled nervously.

"Oooooo! Look out guys, big scary monkey!" Morro laughed as they left Zane's room.

"Yeah Nya, you should have seen the look on your face." Lloyd grinned.

"You mean THIS look!" She hissed in rage.

"No that's more like angry than scared," Jay replied.

"I already told you I don't. Get. Scared." She growled with a fire in her normally calm blue eyes. A thunderous roar suddenly shook the building as the monster shot out the shadow.

"Move!" Lloyd shouted and they dashed down the hallway with the monster close behind them. Suddenly the creature wrapped its tentacles around poor Jay and began to drag him back.

"JAY!" The others screamed.

"WHAT DID I TELL YOU! FUNNY GUY GOES FIRST!" He screamed as he was dragged through a closed door. Morro ripped the door open but was shocked to find no creature and no Jay. The door led into the attic.

"Jay's gone!" Nya cried.

"But how can a stupid prank be doing this?" Pixel asked.

"I'm starting to think this has nothing to do with a prank," Zane replied.

"Well whoever is doing it, they're not gonna scare us," Morro promised, determination clear on his face. Lloyd's eyes suddenly widened in realization.

"Fear, that's it!" He then quickly turned to face the others. "The movie, the monsters, the answers right in front of us! If a prank isn't behind this then it has to be-"

Suddenly the creature's tentacles wrapped around his and Morro's bodies and mouths before dragging them into the shadows on the wall. The others tried to grab them but they were too late. Nya growled and punch the wall in fury.

"Don't suppose any of you had any idea what he was gonna say?" She asked the other two but they shook their heads. With a heavy sigh, Nya moved away from the wall and began looking for the others. The three remaining teens searched for their missing friends for an hour. But so far they had come up empty-handed.

"Jay? Lloyd? Morro? Are you in here?" Pixel whimpered as they searched the lounge.

"They're not here, we've already looked here," Nya growled impatiently.

"We've already looked everywhere," Zane added and Nya frowned.

"Almost everywhere." She muttered and the couple silently followed her up the stairs and into the dark attic. Pixel whimpered and tried to head back before Nya effortlessly picked her and dropped her back to the group. "Not yet, we still have to get to the bottom of this," She insisted and they then headed deeper into the attic.

Suddenly something scurried loudly by Pixel's foot, causing the only human in the room to scream.

"What is it?" Zane asked his trembling girlfriend.

"I saw something." She panicked.

"I didn't, let's keep moving." Nya sighed and they continued walking. Pixel saw it again and screamed even louder. "Will you stop that! There's nothing to be afraid of, it's probably just some rats." Glared Nya.

"Those are not rats!" Pixel exclaimed and pointed to the beam above Nya and Zane's heads. They looked up and saw millions of rats the size of young cats with red eyes hissing at them.

"RUN! RUN!" Nya screamed as they ran towards the door. The rats jumped down and ran after them. Pixel suddenly screamed. Zane and Nya turned around and saw the rats jumping onto her and dragging her down.

"PIXEL!" Zane shouted and ran to his girlfriend's aid. Pixel tried swatting the rats away with her mop but there were too many. By the time Zane got there, Pixel had been dragged through the floor and the rats had vanished. Zane screamed and started hitting the ground in a desperate attempt to bring Pixel back. Nya sighed, knowing that was too late and they had lost another friend.

She grunted as she dragged Zane out of the attic and into the hallway.

"We have to go back! There might still be a way to save her!" He cried as he tried to pry his arm out of Nya's grip. Even without her powers, however, Nya was stronger than him.

"We won't save anyone if whatever's going on gets us to." She snapped. "We have to get outta here and come back with help," She explained. Zane glared at her but didn't say anything. The two werewolves walked down the hallway with their weapons ready. Nya growled and went on ahead. She vowed that whatever had done this would pay.

Suddenly the flashlight from Zane's phone faded away.

"Zane, I could use a little more light," She called but received no reply. She turned around but Zane had vanished without a trace and without her enhanced senses she couldn't track his scent. "Zane?" She called but everything was silent.

Suddenly a banshee-like scream sounded from the other end of the hall. Nya whipped around and saw some kind of demon bat flying towards. She ran away as fast as she could to escape the bat, but it followed her every step of the way. She soon found herself cornered in the lounge by the demon bat. The bat was quickly joined by the tentacle monster and the rats.

"Stay back." She hissed as they started closing on on her. She clutched her head and lowered to her knees. "I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid." She chanted. The monster was now almost touching her with its slimy appendages. Nya's eyes suddenly snapped open.

"I AM afraid." She finally whispered.

Her eyes suddenly narrowed and turned completely yellow. Her wolf had returned. She stood up straight and turned to face the monsters, who were now backing away in slight fear. She may have been afraid, but that doesn't mean she couldn't fight back. She snarled at them when suddenly a wolf seemingly appeared out of thin air and curled around Nya before charging at the entire monster army.

The last thing Nya heard was the monsters screams as they were torn to shreds before everything went black...

* * *

When Nya opened her eyes the first thing she saw was that she was back in the room she was sharing with Pixel at Zane's house and it was now morning. The second thing she noticed was all her friends were hovering over her with concerned faces.

"Nya? Are you ok?" Jay asked. Nya didn't say anything as she looked from one face to the next in a mix of disbelief and relief.

"You're all ok?" She asked.

"You must have been having such a nightmare," Zane replied.

"Yeah, Pix said you were screaming, growling, and panicking in your sleep like you were possessed." Morro laughed, only to look away as the others gave him an angry glare. Nya sat back in shock. It had all just been a horrible nightmare. They were never in any real danger. All those monsters were never really there. She relaxed when she realized this. Back at the haunted house and after watching the scary movie, she had been afraid.

When she refused to talk about it, however, the fear found another way out through her dreams.

Once she had accepted her fears she regained control over it. This was all in her had. Nya's surprise quickly turned into an embarrassment.

"Uh...sorry?" She offered.

"Don't worry, I'm just thankful you're ok." Pixel smiled.

"Anyway, who would like some breakfast?" Jay suddenly asked.

"Yes please." Nya smiled and they all headed downstairs and away from the nightmares...


	19. Irresistible

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just when things are finally settling down in Ninjago, another wild werewolf shows up in town, and Pixel finds something that is irresistible to all werewolves...

Pixel panted as she ran down the halls of the school. She had just received a text from Zane saying that it was an emergency and she had to come and meet him and the others in one of the art classrooms as soon as possible. She ended up running into people and knocking a few students over, but all she could do was offer an apology and continued running until she finally arrived. She burst into the room finding the pack in there waiting for her with big grins on their faces.

"What's the emergency?" She panted, trying to regain her stamina.

"We sort of lied about the emergency." Lloyd smiled and she gave them confused frowns.

"Actually, we've got something for you," Morro added as Zane stepped forward, holding something behind his back. "On behalf of the wolves you so bravely protected, we would like to present you with these." The lone wolf said and Zane pulled out a framed photograph. The photo inside was a sketch Cole had done of his and Kai's wolf forms.

"They're amazing!" Pixel gasped as she took the gift from her boyfriend. "They look exactly like the wolves I saw."

"Oh, I... just copied them from photos on the internet." Cole quickly lied.

"Thank you so much." She smiled and gave each one of her friends a hug, including Morro. "I can't wait to speak to the Department of the Environment." She suddenly said and they all froze.

"Department of the Environment?" Lloyd asked nervously. "Why?"

"The wolves are in danger up there, with people like Iron Baron and farmers with guns." She spat in disgust at the thought of those wolves being hurt. "In some parts of the world, wolves are protected and I'm going to get our wolves protected too."

"What if going public just attracts more hunters?" Morro asked.

"Or the government decides to shoot them?" Nya added.

"I won't let that happen." She snapped and the others did feel a twinge of joy at the thought of Pixel fighting to defend them, even if she didn't know the wolves she saved weren't real wolves. "You weren't there, but your picture brought it all back to me." She said with a fond smile and they felt like slapping themselves for giving her that picture.

"What do you mean?" Zane asked.

"How they trusted me, how they knew I was their friend." She replied. "And I'm going to make sure no one ever threatens them again."

"Wolves have been extinct in Ninjago for centuries, if you want the government to start passing laws to protect them, you'll need proof they actually do exist," Cole said and the others felt some relief. Pixel didn't have any actual proof there were any wolves in the forest and there was no way they were transforming and running in front of a camera for her.

"And I know exactly how to get it; Iron Baron's wolf-bait." She smirked and all the werewolves in the room instantly paled. Kai and Cole had told them about it and they said it was irresistible. If Pixel started spraying that near them, they would go crazy.

"Y-You've got some?" Jay asked, trying to hide his fear.

"Dareth threw the canister away, but we can go up there after school, find it, attract the wolves, and take all the photos we want!" She giggled excitedly.

"Kai and I can't." Cole quickly said. "We're still grounded."

"Oh right, what about you guys?" She asked the others hopefully. Unable to think of a good excuse they reluctantly agreed and she thanked them before leaving to go get ready for her search. As soon as they were sure she was gone, the pack descended into full-on panic mode.

"Why did we give them those drawings?!" Kai cried as he started pacing around

"It was your idea!" Lloyd glared.

"We didn't know Pixel was going to turn into Marti Kheel!" Morro defended the others.

"We should have just said we weren't going." Nya groaned. "Pixel opens the canister, no wolves, no problem."

"And what about tomorrow, or the next day?" Zane argued. "She will not stop until she gets what she wants, we need to find the bait before she does,"

"What happens if we find this canister? Won't we just wolf out?" Cole asked.

"My Dad's got filtered masks in his workshop," Jay suggested and they nodded. It was the best plan they could think of.

"We meet up at Zane's, then we'll head to where that hunter trapped us!" Kai exclaimed and they took off to their homes...

* * *

When Cole made it home, his dad was nowhere to be seen. Cole took a sniff and cursed quietly. His dad was home but he just still be avoiding his son. With how much noise he already had made, he must have known Cole had come home. The teen had to get out of the apartment and meet up with the others without Lou noticing. As quickly as he could, Cole ran into his bedroom and started packing things he thought they might need for their search.

Once he was done, he opened his bedroom window and was about to climb down the fire escape when his door suddenly opened.

"Going somewhere?" Lou asked, not impressed, as he glared at his son from the doorway. Seeing he was busted, Cole sighed and stepped back into the room.

"I was just-"

"Just running off with your friends, getting into more trouble?"

"I'm trying to stop trouble, not cause it," Cole growled, but sighed. "There's more chemical bait and Pixel's going to release it."

"Why?"

"She wants to get the wolves protected by law and the only way she can do that is to prove they exist." He admitted. "The quickest way to do that is to attract them with the scent and take photographs."

"We need to tell your friends' parents," Lou said and pulled out his cell to make the calls

"But we can get that canister before Pixel does!"

"What if it's damaged? Or leaking?"

"Dad, I'm not a kid anymore." He sighed. "I made this mess just, please, let us clean it up." He pleaded but Lou refused to listen...

* * *

Lloyd sighed as he and Morro walked along the forest trail towards Lloyd's home. The lone wolf didn't need to get anything from his place and he doubted his foster parents would even notice he was missing for the afternoon. Lloyd couldn't stop worrying about Pixel and the bait. He knew she had the best of intention but they had to stop her. he just hoped the canister wasn't leaking or damaged or they beat Pixel to it. If she started spraying that near them, they would lose control of their wolves and they might hurt their human friend.

If that happened they would never be able to live with the guilt.

As he walked, Morro suddenly caught a sniff of something strange and he stopped walking. Lloyd stopped and gave Morro a confused look until he smelt it too. It faintly smelt of a werewolf, but they couldn't tell if it was from someone they knew. Learning from his mistake with his father, Lloyd and Morro followed the scent, preparing for what they might find. What they found shocked them, however. Sat behind a large tree near the forest trail was a girl.

The girl looked a few years younger than him with chocolate brown eyes and short, curly black hair.

On each of her cheeks were three thin painted red lines, they looked almost like whiskers. She was absolutely filthy and her clothes weren't much better. They looked worse than she did. What was once a white shirt was now a torn, dirt-stained shadow of its former self, only barely able to hang from her shoulders like a discarded old towel. She was wearing a tattered white and red fleece over her shirt. It was too big, torn, and very dirty, but at least it helped her fight the elements, even if only for a little.

Her white pants were a mess as well.

A big tear had split the left leg in two and the right leg was full of smaller tears as well. At least she had brown boots to protect her feet. Although they were tattered, a little too big, and the left toebox had come loose from the sole. She wore a red bandana around her neck that was full of holes but still holding together. Her head was covered by a large white hat that had what looked like a wolf face stitched into the front. Lloyd took a quick sniff and realized she was the werewolf he had been following.

Judging by her appearance, she must have been wild so Morro carefully pushed Lloyd behind him and they braced themselves in case she attacked.

Instead, the girl simply stood up and her cold eyes started to look them up and down until they zeroed in on Lloyd.

"So they haven't made you completely human, then." She huffed.

"Who are you?" Morro growled, slowly stepping away from the wild werewolf.

"You know who I am." She said and Lloyd frowned. He had never seen this girl in his life. Against his better judgment, Lloyd took another sniff and his eyes widened when he picked up a very familiar scent.

"You smell like... my father?" He muttered in shock and slight fear.

"I'm Akita, from your father's pack; and I've come to take you home."...

* * *

Cole glared at passing objects through the window as his father drove them both to Zane's home. After Lou had called the other parents, he had dragged his son into the car and they sat in silence as he drove. When they arrived, Cole noticed there were other cars parked in front of the house too. It wasn't until he and Lou went inside did he see why. Gathered in the house were Jay and Zane and their parents, along with Misako and Wu.

It was almost like an intervention.

Kai and Nya weren't there, however, most like because their parents were out of town and Morro and Lloyd were nowhere to be seen either. Morro he could understand but Cole didn't understand why Lloyd wasn't here when his family was. Cole didn't have time to worry about that however because Lou made him sit next to Jay and Zane.

"So let us get this straight." Wu seethed. "You children gave Pixel a picture of you in wolf-form?!"

"What were you thinking?" Misako glared.

"We were thinking about our friend," Cole growled. "You know, the ones who saved me and Kai from those hunters!"

"Who is now about to call the authorities!" Lou exclaimed.

"Pixel doesn't mean any harm," Jay argued.

"Most humans never do, but it can still end badly," Edna said calmly.

"We know it's good to have friends but your pack, your own kind, they have to come first." Dr. Julien explained. The teens were about to argue when Zane's phone suddenly started ringing.

"It's Lloyd." He told the others and answered the phone. "Hello?"

 _"Another werewolf from my Dad's pack's just shown up."_ Lloyd quickly said, catching the pale boy off guard.

"Is Garmadon there?" He asked, startling the adults.

"Garmadon? What's going on? Is my son alright?" Misako asked, fearing for her son's safety.

"Another wild werewolf from Garmadon's pack showed up," Zane replied and the others gasped.

"Wonderful! Another one!" Lou growled in frustration. Zane chose to ignore him and returned to his phone call.

"Why's she here?"

 _"She says she's come to take me 'home',"_ Lloyd replied and Zane could hear the annoyance and impatience clear in his voice. "What part of, 'No, I don't want to live in a cave' did Garmadon not understand?!"

"I do not know, just stay with her and try to figure it out." He said and glanced at the others in the room. "I've got family issues of my own to deal with." He sighed before hanging up the phone. As soon as he put the phone away, the parents started ranting.

"All these years we've told you to hide the truth, we weren't saying it to spoil your fun," Lou growled. "There are people out there who'd hurt werewolves."

"You don't think we know that?!" Cole snarled. "We've kept the secret, haven't we?"

"No thanks to Morro!" Wu shouted.

"Things have been going ever since that boy arrived!" Misako added with a glare.

"We have tried to help him." Dr. Julien sighed. "We brought him into our pack, showed him how to be safe."

"Where did that get us?" Lou scoffed. "He got Kai and Cole arrested on a full moon! Kai and Cole were captured by hunters, and half the city has seen Garmadon!"

"You can't blame Morro for Iron Baron or what Garmadon did!" Jay argued.

"He saved Kai's life, remember!" Zane exclaimed.

"He's getting really good at controlling his wolf and he's really happy here!" Cole pleaded and for a brief second, it looked like their parents were listening to the teenagers. That is, unit all the adult in the room shared a look, and immediately started locking all the doors and windows.

"What's going on?" Jay asked.

"We're staying here, where it's safe until Pixel's used all this scent up," Misako stated.

"Morro's out there with Lloyd!" Zane shouted in disbelief.

"And we don't have a clue where Kai and Nya are!" Cole added.

"We'll find Kai, Lloyd, and Nya," Ed reassured and Edna nodded in agreement. With him and Edna being human they would be unaffected by the bait if Pixel started using it.

"And Morro is no longer our problem." Wu glared before the teens could ask.

"What?!" All three of them cried.

"He's out of control, and sooner or later he's going to get caught, and you are not going down with him!" Lou shouted.

"It's the only way to keep you all safe." Dr. Juilen said calmly trying to ease some of the tension.

"Well, we're not going to let you abandon him!" Cole snarled

"It's not your choice anymore! Get upstairs and stay there!" Misako ordered. The teens wanted to argue but they were too outnumbered. With angry snarls and growls the three teens reluctantly ran upstairs to Zane's room. They stayed up there for close to an hour until they were sure their parents were distracted, then they climbed out Zane's window and piled in Cole's car, and took off before their parents even realized what was happening...

* * *

Pixel sighed as she waited for the others at the Ying Yang cafe. They were supposed to be here half an hour ago so they could help her search the forest for Iron Baron's wolf bait. It was getting late and they were losing daylight. If they didn't arrive soon, Pixel would have to go without them. As she was waiting, Harumi and her gang of cheerleaders suddenly entered the cafe and spotted her on her own

"Oh, look, Dr. Monster's going on an expedition," Harumi smirked, but Pixel just rolled her eyes.

"Is your boyfriend coming?" Maggie laughed.

"Nah, she's already scared him away." Harumi cackled and the rest of her gang joined in as they took their seats. Pixel just chose to ignore the cackling witches. She knew the truth about the wolves in the forest and she was going to protect them, no matter what. After another five minutes, she tried calling Zane and the others but each time all she got was a ringtone. With an irritated sigh, she grabbed all of her things and left the cafe.

She would have to find the bait and the wolves alone, as per usual.

She drove into the forest and straight to the spot where she believed Dareth had thrown the canister. She stepped out of the car and started looking among the bushes and fallen leaves. After searching for about fifteen minutes, she was about to go home when something shiny suddenly caught her eyes. She quickly ran over to it and gasped in delight when she saw it was the canister. She picked it up and was relieved when she saw it was undamaged from the throw.

Now for the real reason, she was out here.

She came to find wolves and that was what she was going to do. With an excited giggled Pixel got her camera ready and started spraying the white misty substance into the air...

* * *

Akita and Morro watched as Lloyd growled in frustration as he hung up the phone. Akita had been watching him talking on the phone in fascination the entire time and Morro had to stop her from taking the phone from Lloyd while he was using it. She had never seen human objects and she was curious about how a voice could come from such a small box. After a moment of thinking, Lloyd turned to the two werewolves with a stubborn glare.

"Are you coming with me then?" She asked impatiently, getting nervous being so close to a human city.

"Where's Garmadon?" Lloyd asked.

"Dunno." She shrugged. "Tracking me, probably."

"So you've come on your own?" Morro asked in disbelief.

"I heard Garmadon talking about you, he said where you lived and I left when the rest of our pack was sleeping." She explained.

"So you ran away from home to find me?" Lloyd glared. The last thing he needed was his father coming back when things were already such a mess.

"Why else would I be here?" She growled. Lloyd was about to say something when his phone suddenly buzzed, causing Akita to jump back in fright. Lloyd just rolled his eyes and looked at the text, only to curse when he saw it was from Pixel, asking where they were. They had forgotten they were supposed to be meeting Pixel to go searching for the canister.

"Come on, let's go to my place." Morro sighed and the two boys made to head back to the city, only stop when they saw Akita wasn't following them.

"It's not safe here," Lloyd said, but she wouldn't move. "There's a canister, it's got something in it that makes werewolves go out of control, like a scent."

"But that's the human world." She whimpered.

"It's not as scary as it looks," Lloyd reassured.

"I'm not scared!" She snarled. Knowing they were running out of time, Morro grabbed her wrist and started dragging her all the way to his house, kicking and screaming all the way. Lloyd just rolled his eyes and followed them, casting a worried look to the forest. Eventually, they arrived at Morro's foster home in the suburbs of Ninjago city. It had taken them a while to sneak Akita in without any neighbors seeing them, but they did it.

As soon as they stepped into the house, Morro took a quick sniff and relaxed when he realized his foster parents weren't home yet.

They were both probably still at work or something like that. While the two boys were trying to figure out what to do now, Akita slowly walked around the house in a stunned daze. This was the first time she had ever been in a human house and it was nothing like she was expecting. All her life she had been told human homes were dens built to store and capture unlucky werewolves. Instead of the pelts of fallen wolves and weapons, all she found were comfy carpets, framed photographs, and the scent of vanilla.

"I suppose this is a bit weird for you," Lloyd said as he and Morro led her into the white, sterile kitchen. "Just don't touch... anything."

"Have you got any meat?" She asked, being able to smell food in this room. Morro and Lloyd flinched at this and looked at each other. They didn't know how to explain that Morro's foster parents were vegetarians, in fact, they doubted she even knew what that word meant.

"How about a burger?" Lloyd offered and he immediately dashed over to the freezer and pulled out five frozen vegan burger patties. Hopefully, Akita wouldn't notice they weren't made with real meat. He placed them on the counter and began looking for some bread to put them on. While he was doing that, Akita picked one up and tried to bite into it. When she realized it was frozen, she threw it away in disgust.

"They're made of ice!" She gagged loudly.

"We haven't cooked them yet!" Morro snapped as he put the remaining burgers onto the bread and into the microwave. They stood in silence for the next two minutes until the microwave finally beeped, signaling the burgers were done. Unfortunately, the small sound had startled the young wild werewolf, causing her to jump backward and straight into some shelves. The shelves fell over and all the plates in held shattered on the cold tile floor.

Before Morro could lose it, Lloyd quickly ushered Akita upstairs to Morro's bedroom while the lone wolf cleaned up the mess best he could.

After another ten minutes, Morro finally came upstairs, carrying two plates of burgers. They were a little cold now but they were still edible. Akita devoured the burgers before the boys could have a bite. She didn't seem to notice they were vegan burgers.

"So you live in the wild, with Garmadon?" Morro asked, but all she did was glare at him. "Any brothers and sisters?"

"A brother." She said, her mouth still full of food.

"I already told Garmadon I didn't want to go with him so why are you here?" Lloyd asked.

"All Garmadon ever talked about was finding you." She spat, causing bits of burger to fly out her mouth. "His lost child kept away from him by tame werewolves, how when he transformed he'd bring him back home."

"Look, Akita, I already told Garmadon I wouldn't go with him so what makes you think I'll change my mind now?"

"You have to, for your own good." She begged. "Humans, and the tame werewolves, they're corrupting you, both of you."

"Did Garmadon tell you that?" Lloyd asked with an eye roll.

"Stop calling him that! He's your father!" She roared. "You both have been hiding what you are too long you think you're one of them."

"We are one of them... sort of," Morro muttered. Even after all these months, he hadn't really felt like he was part of the pack, especially with the adults. They always treated him like an outsider and he had a feeling that they might blame him for all the bad things that had happened recently.

"I know it's going to disappoint you, Akita, but I like it here." Lloyd sighed, getting really sick of his father trying to take him to the wild.

"I don't care what you like, he was gone for weeks!"

"Garmadon?" Morro asked, but she ignored him and glared at Lloyd.

"Since coming home without you, he's not the same." She hissed. "He doesn't hunt, he hardly notices anything, you're the only thing he thinks about anymore; I want Garmadon back the way he was, and the only way to get that is to bring you home!" She bellowed. Before Lloyd could respond, however, the front door downstairs opened and all three werewolves froze. Morro took a quick sniff and suddenly paled. His foster mother was home.

"Morro! What's all this?!" She suddenly cried from downstairs and he flinched. He must not have cleaned up Akita's mess as well as he thought.

"If you're in trouble you'll have to leave with me," Akita smirked.

"I'm not in that much trouble." Morro scoffed.

"Morro!" His foster mother screamed again and that was all the encouragement he needed to climb out the bedroom window with Lloyd and Akita and back towards the forest. They ran for about an hour until they were far enough away from the city for Akita to be comfortable.

"Does this mean you're coming with me?" She asked the lone wolf once they had all caught their breaths

"Nah, she'll cool off in a few hours." He shrugged.

"She's not your mother." She said and Morro flinched. As soon as they had entered the house Akita knew Morro was the only werewolf that lived there and she felt bad for him, having to live with people who weren't your real pack. Seeing Morro's distraught face, Lloyd quickly pulled the wild werewolf to the side.

"Akita, listen to me." He insisted in a firm tone. "I know what you're saying, I do, but I can't just leave my life here to live a new one with you."

"You will come with me." She glared. "I'll make you come."

"How?" He scoffed. She wasn't strong enough to fight their entire pack.

"By telling people what you really are." She smirked cruelly and before either boy could comprehend what she had just said, Akita took off at full speed deeper into the forest. It took three seconds for the boys to realize what she had said but by then she was already long gone. While Morro loudly cursed Lloyd silently knelt down and placed a hand on the ground. There was only one way to find her now. Using the power of Jōhō, Lloyd saw through the entire forest and gasped.

He saw that Pixel had found the bait and was carelessly spraying it around.

That would not have been too much of a problem for them if not for the fact he not only saw Kai, Nya, and Akita in the forest but also Garmadon. He must have been tracking Akita down to bring her back to his pack in the wild. Again, Lloyd could have dealt with that if not for the fact all four werewolves in the forest got a whiff of the bait. Lloyd watched in horror as their eyes turned yellow and wild and they all started running towards an oblivious Pixel.

Lloyd gave Morro a scared look and that was all the lone wolf needed to see before he followed Lloyd in the direction of Pixel...

* * *

Pixel laughed as she sprayed the bait around. She was completely oblivious to the danger she was in. She had been spraying the bait around for a good while but no wolves had shown themselves yet. Pixel was about to stop and try and spray it further into the forest until she heard the sound of growling and running footsteps heading straight for her. The sound was coming from just over the hill, out of her sight. Believing it was the wolves, Pixel got her camera ready for the photos.

That is until she saw a terrified Lloyd and Morro running up the road towards her.

"Throw it away! Throw it away!" Lloyd screamed but Pixel just gave them a confused look. It was too late, however. Akita, Garmadon, Kai, and Nya suddenly jumped over the hill in their wolf forms and lunged at the petrified human. Lloyd and Morro had no choice. They quickly transformed into their wolves and blocked the four other wolves. It suddenly became a free for all between all six wolves. They were all snarling, biting, and scratching at each other.

Pixel back away in fear and cowered next to a nearby tree.

For a brief second, she thought she was going insane. But she knew she was not insane. She never was. With that thought in mind, she raised her camera in shaking hands and started taking pictures of the six fighting wolves. Just then, Cole's car drove onto the scene and he, Jay, and Zane quickly jumped out. It only took them only a second to realize what had happened and Zane's heart broke into a thousand pieces when he saw the terror on Pixel's face.

They didn't have a choice, however.

They had to stop this fight before it got out of hand. Pixel watched with eyes wide and her jaw fell open as Cole, Jay and Zane transformed and she watched as they jumped in between the six fighting wolves. After a minute all the wolves calmed down and returned to their human forms. Pixel blushed when she saw they were all naked but was in too much shock to think to cover her eyes. Cole shot everyone a glare as he walked over to Pixel, snatched the canister away from her, and tossed it into his car to deal with at a later date.

While Garmadon was angrily scolding Akita for running away and the others were getting dressed, Zane looked to a stunned Pixel.

He wanted to lie to her again. To say that the chemicals she had been spraying were making her see things, but he knew it was too late. Pixel now knew they were all werewolves. Seeing her expression, Lloyd stepped forward.

"This is my Dad Garmadon and Akita." He explained with a sigh. "We're all werewolves."

"L-Like Zane?" She whispered as she pointed a shaking finger at her boyfriend, who looked away in shame. They all just stood there in silence until the sound of a car approaching them was heard. They all looked over and their eyes widened when they saw it was Cole, Jay, Zane, and Lloyd's families. The adults quickly climbed out of their cars and took a look at the scene. They saw their children, a terrified human, and two wild werewolves.

As soon as they saw Kai and Nya and the two wild werewolves didn't have any clothes, having lost them in the forest, their stomachs sank.

"What happened?" Asked a fearful Edna.

"Your secret's out," Garmadon replied smugly. Misako eyes wandered over everyone and as soon as she saw Morro, the red mist descended.

"You did this!" She snarled at the lone wolf. "We invite you into our pack, and you've destroyed everything!" She bellowed and lunged for the teen, only to be stopped by Lloyd. Her attack nearly caused another fight to break out amongst the werewolves, with Cole and Jay shielding their human parents and Garmadon standing between Akita and the pack.

"You need to leave our territory!" Wu exclaimed and the teens instantly started protesting.

"It's all right, guys." Morro quickly said with a defeated sigh. He knew that he never belonged here, no matter how much he tried to deny it. "He's right, I don't belong here, but maybe..." He trailed off and looked to Garmadon and Akita. His foster parents wouldn't miss him and now that Pixel knew he guessed most of the others were leaving the city so there wasn't much left for him here. Apart from one person, that is, but she would quickly move on.

Garmadon thought about it for a moment and nodded.

He might have his son but at least he had one consolation prize. Zane turned to Pixel and she seemed to have recovered some of her senses as she was slowly getting back to her feet.

"Pixel, I wanted to tell you." He whimpered but she started backing away from the boy she once loved. "If you give us a chance to explain..." He begged but the human had already taken off into the forest and back to the city. Zane wanted to chase after her but his father had suddenly grabbed him and was pushing him into the car. He looked at his friends and saw their parents were doing the same. Even Misako and Wu were dragging Kai and Nya away with them.

They all needed to leave the city before Pixel posted her pictures.

As they drove away, Lloyd looked out the window and watched as Morro, his father, and Akita slowly walked away into the depths of the forest. Pixel had heard they all drive away but she didn't stop walking. She had hot heavy tears rolling down her pale cheeks and to her camera that she still kept clutched to her chest. She just wanted to go home. She knew they were werewolves, but they had somehow tricked her and they have been tracking her for years.

All this time they had been laughing behind her back and treating her like she was stupid.

Stupid Pixel and her stupid stories. They lied to her for years! She knew it was a very big secret but she had hoped at least Zane would have trusted her enough with it. She was supposed to be their friend, Zane's girlfriend, and all this time they treated her like an idiot. Well, guess what? This time, she was going to do the right thing. For the first time ever, Pixel had a genuine exclusive!...

* * *

As soon as Lloyd and his family, along with Kai and Nya, had gotten to Lloyd's house, Wu and Misako immediately started packing while the teens just sat on the couch in shock. Lloyd had given the siblings some of his clothes since they hadn't found theirs. They were a little tight on Kai and a bit baggy on Nya but the siblings didn't have the right to complain. Not when they had more pressing matters to worry about. Wu and Misako had told them what was going to happen on the car ride over here.

The plan was to pack up their whole lives and move to who knows were, far away from the city they had spent most of their lives in.

"Just take the essentials and the valuables," Wu ordered as he approached the teens. "I will call your parents and they can meet us when we get there." He explained but got no response. He simply sighed and went to help Misako pack up their lives. About ten minutes later, Misako walked in and glared when she saw the teens hadn't moved.

"Come on, Lloyd, you've got to pack! Pixel's photographs will be online by now!" She exclaimed. The boy glared at his mother and ran off upstairs, his head to scrambled to do anything else...

* * *

Pixel sighed as she opened the website she had created to show the world what she had discovered in the forest. She was about to transfer the photos she had taken onto the website. She had taken over a dozen of them in their wolf forms. This is it, she was going to rock the world with these. All she had to do was click the confirm button and the whole world would know she wasn't crazy.

"You can't do that to the others." A voice suddenly said and Pixel nearly jumped out of her seat. Sat in her window was Morro. He had a stoic expression and a heavy-looking rucksack.

"W-What do y-you want?" She gulped, afraid he was going to attack.

"You think you know what it's like to be different, Pixel, to be the outsider, but you have no idea." He scoffed. "How scared we are of being discovered, having to live on the run, being captured, and locked in a cage." He sighed and she looked away. "How much we just wished we were normal, like you."

"H-How is Zane?" She finally asked.

"I dunno, I'm going to leave with Garmadon and Akita." He shrugged. "I expect the others are leaving too." He added and she looked up in shock.

"Because of me?"

"You know the truth." He sighed and looked to the laptop, where Pixel still had yet to post them on the website. "Won't be long before all kinds of people know, some people will be worse than Iron Baron, Kai and Cole wanted to say thanks for saving them from him." He chuckled weakly.

"That was them?" Pixel gasped. She wasn't that surprised, she figured that one of them was the wolves she had saved but it was still shocking to think that two of her friends could have been killed because of her.

"You did the right thing then, do the right thing now." Morro pleaded before climbing back out the window and disappearing. Pixel could only look at the pictures she had taken...

* * *

After they had packed up all their things, all the werewolf families had driven up to Zane's house. Dr. Juilen was booking train tickets for everyone and hotels in the next three cities away from Ninjago. Wu had called Ray and Maya and they were going to meet them there. Then they would work out a proper plan and they would probably never see each other again.

As everyone arrived they saw Zane and his father had packed up most of their house, with boxes full of items scattered around.

While the adults were hacking over the final details, the teens all gathered in the lounge.

"I had no idea we had so much stuff." Dr. Julien smiled sadly as he looked over the boxes.

"300 years our family has been in this city." Wu sighed. The teens heard this from their spot in the lounge and the guilt threatened to drown them. They felt guilty for lying to Pixel, for getting caught by Iron Baron, for not telling their parents about the wolf bait, and most of all, allowing Pixel to take pictures of the wolves and exposing their secret.

Now they were all moving away and would most likely never see each other ever again.

Jay started tearing up at the thought of never seeing his friends or Nya again. This is exactly what happened with his biological parents. He feared Nya would find someone else and forget all about him. His parents saw this and went to comfort their son.

"Oh, baby, leaving here is the hardest thing we will ever have to do but I promise you one thing, it will be all right in the end." Edna soothed as she rubbed his back.

"We'll all have a new life, and you will be happy again," Ed promised. Everyone sat in silence, trying to come to terms with everything when there was suddenly a knocking at the front door. they all shared worried glances as Dr. Julien slowly walked to the door while the other parents stayed behind, ready to protect their children at all cost.

After a few moments, he returned with a shameful looking Pixel following close behind.

Everyone just stood there frozen, too scared to speak until Dr. Julien finally cleared his throat and signaled for the adults to leave the teens to talk it all out. Although reluctant and first, the parents followed the doctor into the kitchen, giving all the kids some privacy.

"I think you should have this," Pixel muttered as she held out a memory card. "That is all the photos I took."

"All of them?" Cole asked as Nya took the card.

"All of them." She promised. "Nothing is going on my blog and I am closing the whole site down."

"Why?" Jay asked.

"Because you're my friends, and that's supposed to mean something." She said and glanced around at the moving boxes. "Morro said you were all leaving."

"You've seen him?" Kai asked in shock.

"He came to mine, I was loading the photos onto my site, offline at the time." She quickly reassured when she saw the fearful expressions and her friends before frowning. "You should have trusted us! I wouldn't have told anyone! Any one of you could have told me any time you wanted to, but you didn't!"

"You're right." Lloyd sighed.

"We should have trusted you." Nya agreed.

"So trust me now, you don't have to go." She pleaded. "I won't tell anyone, who'd believe me anyway?"

"Thank you," Zane whispered and went to hug her, only for his heart to break once again when she stepped away.

"So where's Morro?" Cole asked after an uncomfortable moment of silence, but she looked away.

"He's gone."...

_**THE END** _


End file.
